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Poetry

solstice

By Sjón
Translated from Icelandic by David McDuff
At the winter solstice, Icelandic poet, novelist, and musician Sjón meditates on darkness and reflected light.
The moon is visible in the pink sky over a snowy mountain valley and frozen river
Photo by Daiwei Lu on Unsplash

when your eyes
pause on the ball
that hangs on the third branch from a star
you remember why it got dark and why it is getting light again

the earth (like the heart) leans back in its seat
and like that it travels along an orbit
drawn in the darkness

unpolished pearl in sky-black palm of hand
flickering sun-flame

you remember
that you yourself are a light-bearer
who receives her radiance from others

© Sjón. By arrangement with the author. Translation © 2011 by David McDuff. All rights reserved.

English

when your eyes
pause on the ball
that hangs on the third branch from a star
you remember why it got dark and why it is getting light again

the earth (like the heart) leans back in its seat
and like that it travels along an orbit
drawn in the darkness

unpolished pearl in sky-black palm of hand
flickering sun-flame

you remember
that you yourself are a light-bearer
who receives her radiance from others

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