Miltos Sachtourisuris

In memory of Guillaume Apollinaire
It rains continually in my sleep
my dream fills with mud
the place is dark
and I'm waiting for a train
the station master is picking daisies
that have sprouted on the rails
as it's been a long time since
any train has arrived at this station
and suddenly the years have passed
I sit behind a window
hair and beard grown long
as if I'm very ill
and just as I'm falling asleep again
slowly she comes
holding a knife in her hand
she comes up to me carefully
and plunges it into my right eye.
...

What's the girl looking for
in the darkness of the chair?
quickly
as night falls in autumn
she undresses
with clouds before her eyes
with the rain inside her head
with the needle in her heart
she removes the stockings
removes the flowers
discards the halo

outside the time's leaves
are dyed in blood
...

Pensive Maria
removed her stockings

From her body came
voices of others
of a soldier who spoke like a bird
of a sick person who'd died of sheep's pains
and the cries of Maria's baby niece
that had been born those very days

Maria wept wept
now Maria laughed
she spread her arms at night
remained with her legs apart

Then her eyes darkened
black black blurry they darkened

The radio played
Maria wept
Maria wept
the radio played

Then Maria
slowly opened her arms
she began to fly
around the room
...

In the morning
you see death
looking through the window
at the garden
the cruel bird
and the quiet cat
on the branch

passing
on the street outside
is the phantom-car
the supposed driver
the man with the broom
the gold teeth
laughs
and in the evening
at the cinema
you see
what you didn't see in the morning
the joyful gardener
the real car
the kisses with the real couple

that death is not liked
by the cinema
...

They placed him there where the wind blows most wild
they pledged him to the bitter frosts
they gave him a black garment
and a red tie
a sun pierced with a nail that would drip
black glasses
blood on top of the poison
a staff
and a canary
they placed him there where pain springs
they gave him to death
that he'd shine of silver
...

The dove would pass this way
they'd lit torches all round in the streets
others kept watch in the rows of trees
children held flags in their hands
hours passed and it began to rain
then the entire sky grew dark
a lightning flash whispered something in fright
and the cry broke in man's mouth

then with ferocious teeth the white dove
howled like a dog in the night
...

It smelled of fever
that was no garden
some strange couples were walking inside
wearing shoes on their hands
their feet were large white and bare
heads like wild epileptic moons
and red roses suddenly
sprouted
for mouths
that were set upon and mauled
by the butterfly-dogs.
...

To Nora Anagnostaki
When my mirror turned
to the sky
there appeared
a moon half-devoured
by the flame
red ants
and a head beside it
burning too in the fiery rain
the head shone
gleamed
as the fire took hold and left it charred
and whispered:
The trees burn and are lost like hair
the angel vanishes with wings scorched
and pain
a dog with broken leg
remains
remains
...

When they find me on the cross of my death
the sky around will have reddened far beyond
there'll be a suspicion of sea
and, from above, in a now terrifying darkness
a white bird will recite my songs.
...

He stared deep
deep
into the well
its depth
had no end
in this life

the flesh peeled off
and fell bit by bit
soon nothing would remain
but his skeleton

I've decided - he said -
I've finally decided
I'll live among the drowned
and among the lepers
...