Poetry

I am a cow named Poetry,
I give a little milk,
usually 2.5% fat,
sometimes I manage
to squeeze out 3%,
I’m proud that it’s processed
with the most advanced technology
and in paper tetrapacks
reaches undemanding users,
I am sick with all the diseases
not unknown to living things
and carefully detailed
in veterinary textbooks,
I graze in a good herd
(the collective is friendly,
there are no language barriers),
I am afraid of horseflies and the zoo technician,
I can be useful in other ways too –
when the cold comes, when I defecate,
climb into my pile barefoot,
you’ll see how the warmth
rises from your feet
up to the back of your head.

translated by Jonas Zdanys