DAVID LEHMAN
Dutch Interior

He liked the late afternoon light as it dimmed
In the living room, and wouldn't switch on
The electric lights until past eight o'clock.
His wife complained, called him cheerless, but
It wasn't a case of melancholy; he just liked
The way things looked in air growing darker
So gradually and imperceptibly that it seemed
The very element in which we live. Every man
And woman deserves one true moment of greatness
And this was his, this Dutch interior, entered
And possessed, so tranquil and yet so busy
With details: the couple's shed clothes scattered
On the backs of armchairs, the dog chasing a shoe,
The wide open window, the late afternoon light.

(1991)
from Valentine Place by David Lehman (Scribner, 1996)

DAVID LEHMAN
Interior olandez

Ii placea lumina dupa-amiezelor tarzii cand
se pierdea in camera, si n-ar fi aprins
lampa inainte de opt si jumatate.
Sotia lui protesta, facandu-l posac, insa
nu era o stare de melancolie; ii placea doar
cum aratau lucrurile in atmosfera ce se intuneca
usor, asa imperceptibil incat parea
intimitatea vieţii noastre. Tot omul, barbat
ori femeie, are dreptul la o clipa in care este el insusi,
iar aceasta era clipa lui, aceasta cufundare intr-un
interior olandez, ce respira pace si totusi
e atat de viu: hainele lor rasfirate studiat
pe spatare, cainele in salt sa prinda un pantof,
fereastra larg deschisa, lumina dupa-amiezei tarzii.

(1991)
Din volumul Valentine Place, de David Lehman (Scribner, 1996)

Traducere: Valentina-Monica Barba