Dichten ist schrecklich.
Niemand weiss genau
wie die Wörter Worte
werden, jedes zuerst
ein Belvedere, vor dem
Abgründe gähnen.
Die Worte, nicht mehr
Wörter, sind aneinander
wie schaukelnde Seile
gekettet, die jeder,
der dichtet und ohne Griff
Löcher in die Luft guckt,
sorgfältig beschreitet,
um nicht in die Kluft hin-
einzurutschen. Dichter
müssen schwindelfrei.
***
I am amused by my urge to write in German, as in this description of the poetic act. The first part turns around the odd fact that German has two words for “word”, distinguished from each other only in the plural. Prose translation: Tightrope Artist / Poetry is terrifying. No one knows exactly how one word links to another, each / a prospect opening onto a yawning gulf. Once spun into a chain, placed one after the other, / they sway like a tightrope upon which anyone who writes, staring uneasily into empty space, / must tread carefully, so as not to slip into the void. A writer must not suffer from vertigo. Thanks to F.P. for vetting.