{"id":260,"date":"2021-11-06T16:07:13","date_gmt":"2021-11-06T16:07:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/?page_id=260"},"modified":"2023-01-07T08:06:16","modified_gmt":"2023-01-07T08:06:16","slug":"two-poems-dve-poemy","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/poetry\/two-poems-dve-poemy\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Poems \/ Dv\u011b po\u00e9my"},"content":{"rendered":"

(buy the book)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

“Delbos defies both baroque grandeur and gaudy ornamentation. At the same time, he has a distinct ability for unique poetic expression… He explores a transcendental quality of being, but manifested in interpersonal relationships.” –Milena Fucimanov\u00e1, Tvar<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Two Poems \/ Dv\u011b po\u00e9my<\/em>
\nA bilingual edition in English and Czech
\nTranslated by Tereza Riedlbauchov\u00e1 and Radka Thea Ot\u00edpkov\u00e1
\nForeword by Tereza Riedlbauchov\u00e1
\nThe Literary Salon, 2021
\n124 pages<\/p>\n

Reviews<\/h4>\n

“Delbos defies both baroque grandeur and gaudy ornamentation. At the same time, he has a distinct ability for unique poetic expression… He explores a transcendental quality of being, but manifested in interpersonal relationships. That is why it must be expressed immediately and naturally, without losing the perception of basic beauty, a natural feeling for light, color, and the melody of speech. Both poems have a sympathetic proportion of revealing metaphors and simple records. These proportions are an important attribute of beauty and significantly shift the poet’s message to multi-layered levels.” –Milena Fucimanov\u00e1, Tvar<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

The American poet Stephan Delbos, who first visited Prague in 2003, links the worlds of Czech and Anglophone literature through his life and work. For Delbos\u2019s first book in Czech, we selected two of his substantial poems, \u201cWalking to B\u0159evnov\u201d from his collection\u00a0In Memory of Fire<\/em>\u00a0(2017), and \u201cA Child\u2019s Guide to Candor\u201d from his collection\u00a0Small Talk<\/em>\u00a0(2021). \u201cWalking to B\u0159evnov\u201d portrays the end of a love affair between two characters, Singleton and Stranger, in which Prague has played a central role. In \u201cA Child\u2019s Guide to Candor,\u201d the narrator confronts the Czech and American worlds, at times speaking to his infant son and at times meditating on a parent\u2019s responsibility in bequeathing speech. Concerns about contemporary events blend with the narrator\u2019s admiration for the minute particulars of daily life, and with his memories of childhood and the lives and deaths of his relatives.<\/p>\n

z po\u00e9my\u00a0Walking to B\u0159evnov\/ Proch\u00e1zka na B\u0159evnov<\/em><\/p>\n

IV.<\/p>\n

City where Soviet tanks
\nturn pink & sprout fountains,<\/p>\n

City of snowy fingertips
\n& fists of rain,<\/p>\n

Threshold bridge
\nwhose river is a woman,<\/p>\n

City of sisters silk and silver,
\nthighs and velvet cheekbones,<\/p>\n

City of a man in fray-cuffed khakis
\nkicking wishes from a wilted dandelion,<\/p>\n

City of din, city of breath,
\na brick on my tongue.<\/p>\n

IV.<\/p>\n

M\u011bsto, kde sov\u011btsk\u00e9 tanky
\nzr\u016f\u017eov\u00ed & nakl\u00ed\u010d\u00ed font\u00e1ny,<\/p>\n

m\u011bsto sn\u011b\u017en\u00fdch prst\u00edk\u016f
\n& p\u011bst\u00ed de\u0161t\u011b,<\/p>\n

pr\u00e1h mostu,
\njeho\u017e \u0159eka je \u017eena,<\/p>\n

m\u011bsto sester z hedv\u00e1b\u00ed a st\u0159\u00edbra,
\nstehna a l\u00edcn\u00ed kosti ze sametu,<\/p>\n

m\u011bsto mu\u017ee v uniform\u011b s od\u0159en\u00fdmi man\u017eetami,
\njen\u017e z povadl\u00e9 pampeli\u0161ky vyt\u0159\u00edsk\u00e1v\u00e1 tu\u017eby,<\/p>\n

m\u011bsto lomozu, m\u011bsto dechu,
\ncihla na m\u00e9m jazyku.<\/p>\n

z po\u00e9my\u00a0A Child\u2019s Guide to Candor\/ D\u011btsk\u00fd n\u00e1vod na up\u0159\u00edmnost<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a7<\/p>\n

Vice light morning
\ncovers night\u2019s tracks.<\/p>\n

Church light evening
\ninspires skyward faces.<\/p>\n

Weekend laughter light
\nreminds us of ourselves.<\/p>\n

Responsibility Monday light
\nbrings back practicalities.<\/p>\n

Showering now light
\nwashes memory away.<\/p>\n

Television disaster light.<\/p>\n

Square window light why
\nwe rent this apartment.<\/p>\n

Photosynthesize
\nin these distances.<\/p>\n

Voice light sunburn.<\/p>\n

Or ocean light, my favorite,
\ncrashing shadows, rainbow
\nsprays, triumph and display.<\/p>\n

Honey light sunset.
\nBlue milky light dawn.<\/p>\n

Light moves. Heavy light.
\nGrows and settles,
\nhides, returns.<\/p>\n

\u00a7<\/p>\n

R\u00e1no za ne\u0159estn\u00e9ho sv\u011btla
\nzahlazuje stopy noci.<\/p>\n

Ve\u010der za kosteln\u00edho sv\u011btla
\nzved\u00e1 tv\u00e1\u0159e k nebi.<\/p>\n

Sv\u011btlo ned\u011bln\u00edho sm\u00edchu
\nn\u00e1m p\u0159ipom\u00edn\u00e1 n\u00e1s sam\u00e9.<\/p>\n

Sv\u011btlo uv\u00e1\u017eliv\u00e9ho pond\u011bl\u00ed
\nnavrac\u00ed praktick\u00e9 drobnosti.<\/p>\n

Sv\u011btlo sprchuj\u00edc\u00ed p\u0159\u00edtomnosti
\nsm\u00fdv\u00e1 pam\u011b\u0165.<\/p>\n

Sv\u011btlo televizn\u00ed pohromy.<\/p>\n

Okna na n\u00e1m\u011bst\u00ed osv\u011btluj\u00ed, pro\u010d
\njsme pronajali tento byt.<\/p>\n

Fotosyntetizuj
\nv t\u011bchto d\u00e1lav\u00e1ch.<\/p>\n

Sp\u00e1len\u00ed sv\u011btlem hlasu.<\/p>\n

Nebo sv\u011btlo oce\u00e1nu, m\u00e9 obl\u00edben\u00e9,
\nhrout\u00edc\u00ed se st\u00edny, duhov\u00e1 vodn\u00ed
\nt\u0159\u00ed\u0161\u0165, triumf a pod\u00edvan\u00e1.<\/p>\n

Z\u00e1pad slunce za medov\u00e9ho sv\u011btla.
\nSv\u00edt\u00e1n\u00ed za ml\u00e9\u010dn\u011b modr\u00e9ho sv\u011btla.<\/p>\n

Sv\u011btlo se h\u00fdbe. T\u011b\u017ek\u00e9 sv\u011btlo.
\nRoste a usazuje se,
\nskr\u00fdv\u00e1 se, vrac\u00ed.<\/p>\n

\u00a7<\/p>\n

In the cryptic,
\npost-apocalyptic light
\nof American morning,
\nwhen noon is a rumor
\nI redefine momentarily
\nmy identity as father.<\/p>\n

Snow glitters suburbs,
\na world all albino;
\nI am stung with insomnia,
\ntongue bruised
\nfrom late wine
\nand an empty school bus,
\nobscene yellow, creeps
\nthrough these streets
\nnamed for felled trees.<\/p>\n

My youth is a boy chewing gum
\nin a blank parking lot,
\nlocked ice skating rink
\n10:15 pm; something
\ntells me I am still
\nthere I am standing stiller
\nthan this dawn,
\nawaiting a ride from one
\ncar out of millions that\u2019s familiar.<\/p>\n

\u00a7<\/p>\n

V kryptick\u00e9m,
\npostapokalyptick\u00e9m sv\u011btle
\namerick\u00e9ho r\u00e1na,
\nkdy poledne je pouh\u00e1 f\u00e1ma,
\nna chv\u00edli p\u0159edefinuji
\nsvou identitu otce.<\/p>\n

Sn\u00edh rozjas\u0148uje p\u0159edm\u011bst\u00ed,
\nsv\u011bt cel\u00fd jako alb\u00edn;
\n\u0161t\u00edpe m\u011b nespavost,
\njazyk, mod\u0159ina
\nod no\u010dn\u00edho v\u00edna,
\na pr\u00e1zdn\u00fd \u0161koln\u00ed autobus,
\nobsc\u00e9nn\u011b \u017elut\u00fd, se \u0161ine
\nt\u011bmito ulicemi, je\u017e nesou jm\u00e9na
\npok\u00e1cen\u00fdch strom\u016f.<\/p>\n

Moje ml\u00e1d\u00ed je kluk se \u017ev\u00fdka\u010dkou
\nna pr\u00e1zdn\u00e9m parkovi\u0161ti,
\nzam\u010den\u00e9m kluzi\u0161ti,
\n10.15 odpoledne; n\u011bco
\nmi \u0159\u00edk\u00e1, \u017ee jsem st\u00e1le
\ntam, jsem nehybn\u011bj\u0161\u00ed
\nne\u017e tento \u00fasvit
\na \u010dek\u00e1m, \u017ee m\u011b sveze jedno
\nauto, kter\u00e9 je mi mezi mili\u00f3ny jin\u00fdch pov\u011bdom\u00e9.<\/p>\n

\u00a7<\/p>\n

We wind around
\nagain to autumn,
\nseason of his earthly birth,
\nmornings of bulb light
\ncavern the living room
\nagainst obsidian air
\nentrancing
\nthe unpronounceable square.<\/p>\n

No deception yet
\nflushes the soft saucers
\nof his cheeks, no
\nturmoil to rivet dread.
\nBut somewhere, we know.<\/p>\n

Across facades
\nbuttressing the square
\none by one windows
\nyawn with light,
\nconstellations of families
\nand misanthropes
\nshuddering early
\ninto evening.<\/p>\n

\u00a7<\/p>\n

Zase se vineme
\nzp\u011bt k podzimu,
\n\u010dasu jeho pozemsk\u00e9ho zrodu,
\njitra um\u011bl\u00e9ho sv\u011btla
\nhloub\u00ed ob\u00fdvac\u00ed pokoj
\nproti obsidi\u00e1nov\u00e9mu vzduchu,
\nkter\u00fd hypnotizuje
\nnevysloviteln\u00e9 n\u00e1m\u011bst\u00ed.<\/p>\n

Je\u0161t\u011b \u017e\u00e1dn\u00fdm zklam\u00e1n\u00edm
\nnezrudly mu m\u011bkk\u00e9 misky
\ntv\u00e1\u0159\u00ed, \u017e\u00e1dn\u00fd zmatek je\u0161t\u011b
\nneochromil d\u011bs.
\nAle kdesi, my v\u00edme.<\/p>\n

Na fas\u00e1d\u00e1ch
\npodep\u00edraj\u00edc\u00edch n\u00e1m\u011bst\u00ed
\njedno okno za druh\u00fdm
\nz\u00edv\u00e1 sv\u011btlem,
\nkonstelace rodin
\na misantrop\u016f
\nse t\u0159esou
\nzkraje ve\u010dera.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(buy the book) “Delbos defies both baroque grandeur and gaudy ornamentation. At the same time, he has a distinct ability for unique poetic expression… He explores a transcendental quality of being, but manifested in interpersonal relationships.” –Milena Fucimanov\u00e1, Tvar Two Poems \/ Dv\u011b po\u00e9my A bilingual edition in English and Czech Translated by Tereza Riedlbauchov\u00e1 … Continue reading Two Poems \/ Dv\u011b po\u00e9my<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":316,"menu_order":2,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-260","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/PaBxfb-4c","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/260","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=260"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/260\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":354,"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/260\/revisions\/354"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/316"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stephandelbos.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=260"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}