Cenk Gündoğdu
(Turkey)
his dream’s serdar
serdar passed himself
through the train coming from the Hijaz
his lights were on, a green colt
he said – it is my house
with the villages passing within us
we could know him from afar,
we had read from the leaves
of newspapers and calendars
the pain that inhabits the Orient
the green mountains of the country
do not die where
the enchanting blue begins
he took a time from the hands of the world
we heard this long ago… but now it is
something else, with a heart oblivious of everything
he kept a South in his mind where to end again
then he went up on the joyful plateaus he remembered of
on his neck a red radio
in his jacket the urgency to get married
songs are necessary for the revolution
freedom from the horses’ wind
hardtack, bread and words
I am taking a note of you, the snow has stopped in Nusaybin
the street has shot three guards, tobacco
made us see, there in the Orient,
girls are an ever-bleeding sky
we forgot to say this as well
Indian style shals
before the telegraph that comes at night was transmitted
the summer came with the curiosity of the kids
our preparation to come to the world
the geometry that is not in the account
and we have a dream of deep passion
we know this, we are looking for an evening without sleep
the orange boxes and light wines in the rain with serdar
translater: nicola verdarame
the night of mari
mari’s fate is dark
that’s why she loves cats
at night she tries out insomnias
before the sailors collect their sea
she has flown alongside mirrors
erring with the wind that praises her youth
every travel always stops somewhere hidden in her
who does this white, made of oscurity, resemble?
mari in an obscure time,
the bells of foggy northern islands
subtly descending into nothing
everything is set with something arcane
as if everything made one by desire
was to be smashed into pieces
mari, this swarthiness is so elegant
this solitude is so dark blue
my dear dread, I came to you from a pain
talk to me, twist
drive me to the mountains in your mind
until the sleep’s morning
there’s a life from us towards the city
let’s forget the cats that didn’t see the night
the horizon of the weary workers
and with these voices that from me pass to you
let us denude this noble darkness
CENK GÜNDOĞDU
translater: nicola verdarame
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He was born in 1976 in Ankara. He studied on Faculty of Business Administration and Fine Arts. He graduated from Kocaeli University Faculty of Fine Arts Branch of Performing Arts Department of Dramatic Authoring. He has been editor of both “Üç Nokta” literary journal which he issued since 2001 and “Şiir Defteri” since 2005. The play, belonged to Aleksandr Sergeyeviç Griboyedov, named Akıldan Bela(İkaros Yayınları, 2011) translated by him(supported by Engin Toprak) and his own play Radyonun İçindekiler(İkaros Yayınları, 2011) were published. Gundogdu’s first poetry book “Issız” (Kırmızı Kedi Yayınları) awarded Arkadaş Zekai Özger Şiir Ödülü and Metin Altıok Şiir Ödülü has been published to meet with the artlovers.