Mantis 21 (Summer 2023)
Translations
Rolf Gjedsted
translated from Danish by Michael Favala Goldman
For ikke at brænde
For ikke at brænde,
gør jeg mig ét med ilden.
For ikke at drunkne,
forener jeg mig med vandet.
For ikke for ofte at forstille mig,
forestiller jeg mig,
at alt inden i,
foregår som alt uden for,
med visse modifikationer.
Der er tale om en balance
mellem salte og vædsker,
temperatur og natur,
noget mere end en ren kemi.
Når vi er sammen,
åbner vi hver gang
døren for en uafsøgt mulighed
uden for og inden i os selv,
til et stumt liv,
der venter på at få en stemme.
To Keep from Burning Up
To keep from burning up
I make myself one with fire.
To keep from drowning,
I unite with water.
To not isolate myself too often,
I imagine
that everything inside me
transpires like everything on the outside
with certain modifications.
This includes a balance
between salts and fluids,
temperature and nature,
more than simply chemistry.
When we are together,
each time we open
the door to a chance possibility
outside of and within ourselves,
for a mute life
waiting to gain a voice.
Danish author, musician, painter, and sculptor ROLF GJEDSTED (1947-2022) wrote fifty-five works of poetry, fiction, translation, and non-fiction. Gjedsted never achieved great notoriety as a writer during his lifetime, but his poetry reveals his dedication to musicality and the transformative power of language. Also a black belt and karate instructor, Gjedsted was fearless in penetrating the substance of whatever topic he approached.
MICHAEL FAVALA GOLDMAN is a translator of Danish literature, a poet, educator, and jazz clarinetist. He has translated 16 books of Danish poetry and prose, including Dependency, book three of The Copenhagen Trilogy by Tove Ditlevsen, which was selected among New York Times’ Ten Best Books of 2021. His third book of poetry, Small Sovereign was awarded First Prize for Poetry in the 2022 LA Book Festival. He lives in Northampton, MA, where he has been running bi-monthly poetry critique groups since 2018