literature

Els Moors: everything’s sold or given away

This week’s Friday Verses are written by Els Moors, who was appointed National Poet of Belgium from 2018 until 2020. We translated alles is verkocht of weggegeven (everything’s sold or given away). This poem first appeared in Dutch in Het Liegend Konijn, a magazine for contemporary Dutch-language poetry.

Els Moors (Poperinge, b. 1976) is a Belgian poet and novelist writing in Dutch. Her poetry was nominated and awarded for several prizes and has been translated into German and French. From 2018 till 2020 Moors was appointed National Poet of Belgium. She lives in Brussels and works as a teacher Creative Writing in Antwerp Brussels and in Arnhem, the Netherlands. Her last novel Mijn nachten met Spinoza
(My Nights with Spinoza, 2021) was published by the Arbeiderspers.

everything’s sold or given away

everything’s sold or given away
i gathered up the borders and sent them
vacuum-sealed with a peruvian delivery service
specialised in february fruit for the former coloniser

it’s okay you can get inside or out here
no problem i’m well set up and anyway
inside’s where it’s at outside only the
eternal confusion of overbred broilers

a few more weeks and the shelling
will get the upper hand a barrel of oil more
or less will wind up any oligarch
yes eve wanted to hunt yes john was well past outcast

for three days i brewed protein
from the acid in my calves while
the chirpy chimney smoked the

stack down and cut the nails

(Dutch version below the photo)

alles is verkocht of weggegeven

alles is verkocht of weggegeven
de grenzen heb ik opgeraapt en vacuüm
verpakt gepost met een pakjesdienst in peru
die in februari fruit levert aan de ex-kolonisator

het is okay je kunt hier binnen en buiten zonder
problemen ik ben erop voorzien en trouwens
binnen gebeurt het buiten enkel de
eeuwigdurende verwarring van plofkippen

nog enkele weken en de bombardementen zullen de
overhand hebben genomen een olievat meer
of minder kan elke oligarch op het kastje jagen
ja eva wilde jagen ja johannes was melaatser dan melasse

ik heb drie dagen eiwit uit het
kuitenzuur gebrouwd en de
schoorsteen dampte dapper al het

schors weg en knipte de nagels

• friday verses
• poetry