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  • ‘Tas varbūt būtu vislabāk…’
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‘Tas varbūt būtu vislabāk…’

Amanda Aizpuriete

Tas varbūt būtu vislabāk – nelikties zinis
par tipogrāfijām, nemaz nelaist klāt vārdiem
tos svinīgi melnos un vienādos burtus,
lai paliek viss mana rokraksta līknēs –
nelīdzenās un saraustītās kā mūžs.
Vislabāk no aprakstītajām lapām
izlocīt kuģīšus, putnus un taureņus,
palaist gaisā, pa vējam, ugunī, ūdenī.
Vēlāk tie bijīgi pieskarsies zemei –
vai nu kā pelni vai slapja papīra driskas,
vai taureņi noguruši. No zemes
izdīgs puķe ar četrām ziedlapām mēnešainām –
mana skaistākā četrrinde. Ziedputekšņi
lidos pa vējam un meklēs sev jaunu augsni,
un cilvēki elpos svešādi smaržaino gaismu.
Un mūžā pavisam citā
manus plecus reiz apskaus par mīļoto kļuvušais dzejolis,
kuru es sen būšu aizmirsusi.


Amanda Aizpuriete

Reproduced by permission of the authors.

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Latvian Shetlandic Shetlandic Translations writing poetry

Translations of this Poem

'Dat wid laekly be best...'

Translator: Christine De Luca


Dat wid laekly be best – no ta budder
aboot printshops, nor hae mi wirds gleg
i da grip o a kirsen keyboard – ta leave hit aa
i da curvin whenks o mi ain hand,
da reffels, da cuggliness lik life.
Hit wid be best ta tak mi pages smoored wi wirds
an fowld dem inta boats, birds an butterflees,
dan baal dem up i da air, inta wind, fire, watter.
Eftir a while, peerie-wyes, dey’ll sain da aert
as ess or as a flaachter o sabbin smatters,
or ootmaggit butterflees. Da aert ‘ll sproot
a flooer wi fowr petals, shapit lik new möns,
mi most lovely fowr-lined verse. Pollen,
ta’en wi da wind, ‘ll flee seekin new möld,
fock ‘ll breathe in a fine, uncan niff…..an
in a different life, da beloved wan dat wis mi poem,
‘ll hadd me i da bosie, a poem A’m already foryatten.

About this poem

In 2005 Aizpuriete took part in a workshop in Shetland organised by Literature Across Frontiers in partnership with the Scottish Poetry Library, and this translation into Shetlandic by another of the workshop poets, Christine De Luca, was made during the sessions there. Further samples from this workshop may be found in the SPL publication All Points North (Edinburgh: Scottish Poetry Library/The Caseroom Press, 2006).

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Amanda Aizpurieteb.1956

Amanda Aizpuriete was born near Riga, Latvia. After studying philology, history and philosophy at the University of Riga, she spent four years at the Maxim Gorky Institute in Moscow. She is the author of numerous poetry collections and has...
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