Sad Day

The German poet Sarah Kirsch died earlier this month, all of Germany just found out today. I liked her work, and when my daughter became interested in reading poetry, I gave her one of Kirsch’s books (Erlkönig). When I started writing poetry, I received a kind rejection from some journal or other with a note from the editor saying I should send them more work when I’d written a poem as “edgy” (their word) as Kirsch’s poem “Sad Day,” her best-known poem. 

Here’s a short poem of hers I like with my translation.

Alleine 

Die alten Frauen vor roten Häusern 

Roten Hortensien verkrüppelten Bäumen 

Brachten mir Tee. Würdevoll 

Trugen sie die Tabletts zurück, bezogen 

Horch- und Beobachtungsposten 

Hinter Schnickschnackschnörkel-Gardinen. 

Alone 

The old women in front of red houses 

red hydrangeas crippled trees 

served me tea. With dignity 

they carried back the trays, resuming 

their posts for eavesdropping and observation 

behind frilled, flourishing curtains.