Iznad vode

Osećao sam da tonemo.
Voda je prodirala u temelje broda,
Voda, masna, crna voda,
Teška kao zemlja,
A mi smo napustili palubu
U nerazrešenoj svađi
I sišli u donji svet,
Među vodu i mulj,
Zamišljajući granice potpalublja
Kao granice jednog okončanog sveta.
I niko nije hteo da podigne pogled,
Kako bi zadržao glavu iznad vode
I sagledao obrise ostrva,
Obećanje dalekog kopna.
Osećao sam da tonemo.
Nešto jače od vode zazivalo nas je u vodu.
Nešto staro kao voda.


Above water

I felt we were sinking.
Water penetrated ship's foundations,
Water, oily, black water,
Heavy as the earth itself,
While we were leaving the deck
In unresolved dispute
Descending into the underworld,
Through water and mud,
Imagining the limits of the lower deck
As the limits of a terminated world.
And nobody would look up
To keep head over water
And examine the contours of the island,
Promise of a distant land.
I felt we were sinking
Something more powerful than water lured us into water.
Something as old as water.

Translated: Radmila Nastić