Monday, July 24, 2017

Many Walls (after Miyó Vestrini)


Don’t take your children to the countryside. Don’t teach them hymns, or tell them stuff about clean water. Make them stand in the rain. Talk about torture, talk in cries and groans. Walk with them for days across the starkest of plains. Then they will know how pointless it is to listen to those who would praise the colour of the sky. They will want to go to Hiroshima, to Seveso, to Fallujah and to Grenfell Tower. There they will stare at you and you will fall to the ground, horrified as anyone who has ever really listened to a bird’s song. They will build many walls. They will make small additions to your memories, will tell small stories about the knowledge of those who know they have nothing.

3 comments:

Beatriz said...

Dear Sean Bonney,
My name is Beatriz Bastos, I´m a poetry translator. I have recently organised and published a book with translations of Frank O'Hara. I am an admirer of your work and I would love to translate some of your poems to Brazilian Portuguese and perhaps get them published. I looked for your email, but I couldn't find one, so I'm posting this comment here to reach you. Is there an email I could write to? Thank you. Beatriz.

Sean Bonney said...

Hi Beatriz. Thanks for getting in touch - it would be great if you would translate some of my work. My email is snbonney@yahoo.co.uk.

Beatriz said...

Thank you. I'll get in touch.