THE CURSED BOAT
A loose translation of ‘‘Meş’um Sandal’’, a poem by T.S., a mental patient whose poem appears in a poem anthology, compiled by one Bedia Tuncer (apparently a teacher, assigned by the state to a mental institution for reasons I didn’t bother to google..yet), published in the early 60’s Turkey.
This book is famous for another poem, that was lifted in part by Erkin Koray and made into the central poetic theme to his classic: Çöpçüler
Cursed Boat
Look,
in a boat
on the green,
sails a man
maybe fisher
maybe not
hard to say, but,
it doesn’t matter,
anyhow,
look on,
at the foam
of his wake,
look on,
that eye-catching
glassy shake,
and look on
and look on
look,
above the boat
is a flock
of seagulls:
wings and tails
that break the waves
that follow
wherever he may go,
and look,
how he falls
down and out
on his back,
then look on:
such poor chap!
such lost soul!
his rope
must have snapped
out from the lock
of his oar
look on,
it’s getting late
waters run dark,
deaf, and mute,
and the boat:
now vacant
in its slight wake,
and this cruel main,
wholly dim,
holds its secret
quiet within,
look on.
