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Għaxart ijiem

December 1, 2019 · Antoine Cassar ·

Poeżija ta’ Antoine Cassar.

Ritratt meħud minn Raisa Galea

 

 

Għaxart ijiem

 

Għaxart ijiem mitlufa, għajnejja niedja
bit-taqtir rieżaħ tal-aħbarijiet.
Mistrieħ ma hemmx. Is-swaba’ wisq imtertra
biex itebbqu l-kpiepel, irażżnu s-skiet.

Mur orqod f’nofs dat-thewdin. Mafja! Mafja!
Mhix ħolma din il-vuċi. Mafja! Mafja!
Narrattiva mhux falza. Forsi faċli.
Imlewna, makabra, affaxxinanti,
u komda. Komda tassew, minn fuq s’isfel.
Distrazzjoni tal-ilħna tqum waħedha,
tqabbel fejn jaqblilha, tgħajjat bla heda.

Mafja! Mafja! Assassin! Assassin!
Tmien ittri fuq il-biceps tal-lemin.
(Fil-mera, tax-xellug. Il-mirja jigdbu.)
Minn ġol-lejl jgħattini kollni kemm jien,
iswed daqs id-dagħbien minn pol għal pol,
mhix ħolma dil-vuċi. Kumbinazzjoni?
Tifkira xejn letterarja ta’ ktieb.
Kwistjoni ta’ unur, personalissma.
Indħil fil-familja, laħam li ntmess.
Il-mafja kompliċi bieżla, u mezz.

Kelb kellu jkun l-eroj, spaniel tad-dwana,
ismu, kumbinazzjoni, bħal min romol.
Mhix ħolma dil-vuċi. Ismu bħal min
iżomm l-imfietaħ ta’ ċerti bibien,
fejn qatt ma daħal re tal-ħallelin,
fejn qatt ma nstemgħet l-għajta t’assassin.

Kumbinazzjoni? Komplott tad-divin?
Għaxar iljieli bis-swaba’ mtertrin.
Għaxart ijiem mitlufa, u għajni niedja
b’ebda kelma jew skiet ma trid tmur bija.

 

Antoine Cassar is a poet, translator, map freak, and peddler of universal passports. Raised between East London, Qrendi and Madrid, though he tends to feel more at home within the pages of an atlas. Erbgħin Jum (Forty Days, EDE), a book-length poem on domestic violence, childhood trauma and walking as self-therapy, was awarded the National Book Prize in 2018.

 

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