Sapardi Djoko Damono Poems

I want to love you simply in words not spoken:
Tinder to the flame which transforms it to ash
...

I awake on the chair as moonlight falls on my face through a glass roof-tile
did the rain stop long ago?
the newspaper I was reading spreads open
lying on the floor; in the middle of the night it looks so cold and transient
...

A hanging light bulb burns bright in the room. The man
entwines his fingers and their shadows move
on the wall; "That's a deer," he says.
...

a stranger is taking off your clothes layer by layer,
seating you in front of the mirror and tempting you
to ask, "whose body am I wearing right now?"
...

When you were a child you made a paper boat and sailed it
on the river shore; the stream flowed gently, and
your boat swayed its way towards the ocean.
...

for Danarto
/1/

He loves crafting masks. He keeps skinning
his own face over and over again
...

/1/

I sent you a few words
...

Imagine if what you see in the mirror this morning
is not your face but the bird that flies in the cloud-spattered
sky, scattering the wind through its feathers;
...

aku terjaga di kursi ketika cahaya bulan jatuh di wajahku dari genting kaca
adakah hujan sudah reda sejak lama?
masih terbuka koran yang tadi belum selesai kubaca
terjatuh di lantai; di tengah malam itu ia nampak begitu dingin dan fana
...

Sebuah bola lampu menyala tergantung dalam kamar. Lelaki
itu menyusun jari-jarinya dan bayang-bayangnya
tampak bergerak di dinding; "Itu kijang," katanya.
"Hore!" teriak anak-anaknya, "sekarang harimau!"
"Itu harimau." Hore! "Itu gajah, itu babi hutan, itu kera . . ."

Sebuah bola lampu ingin memejamkan dirinya. Ia merasa
berada di tengah hutan. Ia bising mendengar hingar-
bingar kawanan binatang buas itu. Ia tiba-tiba merasa
asing dan tak diperhatikan.
...