Elvine

Aline sees you running  and Juliette smiles
Whew, your friends have waited for you

Elvine, your mom shouted , put your shoes on.

Soldiers

Soldiers at the schoolyard, who shows them the way
Your classroom was crowded and then alone , you don’t understand what he is saying

You’re down  and beating, your ankles clutched
What is it that hurts so much?

Nobody knows where Aline and Juliette are

Elvine, your mom hollowed

I am standing at the gate, on the watch
Despair reaches in your shivering hand, begging to go inside

The schoolyard is empty, that harrowing  of her dress
Carved, now spread over these floors

I am back in my country

Here, the rattling of the daily job  outvoices years of silence
Hidden, behind the whispering shadows of that night

When your voice resounds,
it’s the alcohol that tells  me to disappear for a while

The shivering of your hand

***

Written: Reginald Verhofstede
Translation: Tine Liekens