Alberto Estima de Oliveira — O Diálogo do Silêncio / The Dialogue of Silence 23

I really like this one, since I practice 太極拳 taijiquan, or as Estima de Oliveira transliterates the Cantonese, "t'ai kêk." Older people practicing taiji in the park is a staple of urban life in Macau, Hong Kong, China, and Taiwan, and I enjoy watching it as much the poet does.

The 太極 taiji/t'ai kêk, or the "Supreme Ultimate," is a Chinese philosophical concept. It develops from 無極 wuji, or "no-limit," and gives rise to 陰陽 yin and yang. The Wikipedia page on taiji explains it decently enough.


DAS

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23


no andar
balbuciante
dos anos longos

os velhos

dobram-se
p'los joelhos

no gesto
largo
suave
como passe
de ballet

envolvem
o universo
no
t'ai kêk

cerram os olhos
impávidos
em longa concentração
coordenam os movimentos
lentos
em silêncio
de oração.

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23


with the halting
step
of long years

the old folks

bend
at the knees

in a
broad
smooth movement
like a ballet
passe

they embrace
the universe
in the
tai ji

their eyes close
unflinching
in long concentration
slow movements
coordinated
in the silence
of prayer.

20 Years.

If I hadn't been so busy today—with work, with cats, with cooking—I'd have written something more substantial than these few lines to commemorate the 20th anniversary of this blog. As it stands, those reflections will have to come later, if at all.

While The Corpse Speaks has never been particularly special, its continued existence after all these years is pretty remarkable. I don't know if I'm exactly proud of it—parts of it, perhaps; definitely not others—but I feel like it's not outlandish to give myself some credit for maintaining something for so long on an Internet that seems more ephemeral with every passing day.

Here's to another 20 years, preferably filled with more and better writing.

Your Humble Corpse,
DAS

Alberto Estima de Oliveira — O Diálogo do Silêncio / The Dialogue of Silence 22

This one's cryptic. Using articles would make it less choppy, but also diminish its mysteriousness. As it stands, the poem sounds like the words of a non-human intelligence, or force, trying to describe something it saw in the night.

DAS

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22


sorriso
amável
amargo
armado
de tristeza

longa distância
de sombra
(marionete)
fecha os
olhos
sobre a noite

esquece.


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22


smile
kind
bitter
armed
with sadness

far away
in the shadows
(puppet)
closes its
eyes
on the night

forgets.

Alberto Estima de Oliveira — O Diálogo do Silêncio / The Dialogue of Silence 21

Fantastic gambling imagery in this one, though the final stanza makes me stumble a bit. Adding some punctuation would help my translation, but I'll save that for a future revision.

DAS

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21


nos longos
dedos
crispados
perdem-se
as vozes
da sorte
...
no gesto
lanço de esperança
a ânsia
...
na anónima
voz seca
a negação
a roleta.


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21


the voices
of fortune
are lost
in long
curled
fingers
...
desire
in the act
of a hopeful toss
...
in the anonymous
dry voice
denial
roulette.