Heike Henderson

 

 

(USA-Germany)

 

 

 

To be

 

part of this life

part of this time

part of desire

part of delight

 

to be

 

immersed in decisions

immersed in taboo

immersed in directions

and places to go

 

to be

 

accustomed to change

accustomed to grief

accustomed to longing

accustomed to joy

 

to be

 

me

 

 

 

Teilhaben

 

an der Welt

an dem was passiert

um mich herum

und in mir

 

teilhaben

Teil sein

unersetzbar

unentbehrlich

unverzichtbar

immer da

 

teilhaben

an Lust und Leben

Schmerz und Leid

an Wegen voraus

und Wegen zurück

an mir

und an dir

 

teilhaben

Teil sein

unzerstörbar

unausweichlich

immer verändernd

immer neu

 

 

 

To form

 

means to change

to create and disturb

destroy and connect

 

to form

means to last

against all the odds

against all the demons

that try to contain

the spirits that move

and help us sustain

 

to form

means to be

part of this world

part of resistance

and part of the old

part of creation

and part of the new

 

to form

means making room for you

and re-inventing me

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

____________________________________________

 

Heike Henderson is Professor of German and Associate Chair of the Department of World Languages at Boise State University (Idaho, USA). She was born and raised in Germany and holds a PhD in German Literature with a Designated Emphasis in Feminist Theory and Research from the University of California, Davis. To nurture her creative spirit, she engages in poetry and creative writing as well as translations of poems by contemporary authors like Hendrik Rost and Zehra Çirak.