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

Adora cum se domolea in sufragerie
Lumina amiezii tarzii si n-ar fi aprins becul
Decat dupa ce trecea de ora opt.
Nevasta i se tanguia, zicea ca e trist, dar
Nu era vorba de melancolie. Pur si simplu ii placea
Cum pareau lucrurile in trecerea treptata si
Imperceptibila din lumina in intuneric,
Esenta vietii noastre. Fiecare dintre noi,
Barbat sau femeie, merita o clipa de sublim autentic,
Iar al lui acesta era: un interior olandez,
Primitor si calm, atat de netulburat si totusi animat
Cu detalii: haine imprastiate
Pe spatarele fotoliilor, un caine fugarind un pantof,
Fereastra larg deschisa si lumina amiezii tarzii.
 

Traducere: Monica Manolachi