20061024

Aki Salmela


ALMOST BEYOND RECOGNITION


















































































Riverrun

This is mothat’s wus fish, bst deliciougly, and ut rather hy it rese of the ki as it liembles lifeteel tables on the stchen so pnt. Its ey stripped ermanently environmeof its ownes still hhe deep coear transpave the clthe sea, tarency of nverted heystery. Ifstill mighaven that us as a mt pass for you presshe sea whiclose enou your ear ght hear tgh, you mispering fralmost makts huge scom under iyou might ales, and e out the rom the prssage thatmuffled me with it f has risenessing deeit might wea. All dep of the sare dark, ep waters hisper, ifor it hasny part in it had anage, but fthis langu’t, it csighs fro sigh. Andontents toly the sea how lightm the scalthat life dead fish,es of the ncere joy like a sinever fullticipants.nds itselfy understaof its par in every And how l the dead sea whispightly the scales ofers in thefish like grasp. Ano a pleasua nereid tot hope tore we cannd how lighe dead fisa whisperstly the seales of th in the sch, like thg, and allat bring ae waves this thinkinnd take th of us whothe sea whed to it. are subdulse might And what eisper fromsh wasn’s of the d the scaleif this fiead fish, t a dinnerour ready ho are res for you witing on ytlessly walaid tableattracted the sea t, eying at hungrily hat tosses by the moon.




Darkened be unkind

Nite it woulf ones minHow pleasae bottom od be to find from thull unhatcits specied a beutifnaware of hed insect that is uasant it wirts of ons. How ple the outskould be to find froms a small orchards es thought water andcomet with traces oflly beuty y wallet l Occasionaof an emptrests at the bottom st remindexamines itike the laess. One er of the perishablenent, then ns, and pu for a momhat it measuddenly remembers wlet away icable insts the walthis unnotAll that remains is soon even tion. Now tant, and e of attenit wants to its shar moment. This is it has itshas passed? And the even that w I see liell me I. Excatly ho you can tfe, but by all meansen. I woult knocks a. Ve mistakn the nighd love hear that whew like add to entert my windode its minark birk that has ma I recogniz here. I d my room. Why it ise this bird and known the windike an oldon’t opalanguage low, but I open this case of knot to go off, darkenedbe unkind igarettes. It might, so I offer you one er this one for you.




Lone Deranger

I heard thunshot, but nothing und of a ghappened. E heavy so I turned tm my chest and lookebarrel frod at it. The pistol tlooked bidea what all the fuit had no ss was aboack as if ut. It migt from the factory, me straighthe innoceht have cont gleam o chest. It was wet I felt mynd sticky, fnewness. I found troke beside my nippllet had be. Broken he hole bubone gave inal. I heard the he it felt favy sound easily in, of a gunshened. I turned the pthing happistol barrot, but noel slowly ked around me. Room or and loolooked bacto the flok as if itl the fuss was aboutea what al. Everythi had no idng was neaeaned before a journ, as if cley. I prest and tidysed a fingt hole and felt slow the bullely from sier through de to side, soft and quiet. Hot was warmw quickly. Inside ieverything I heard the heavys I thought. Ound of a happens, gunshot, b I put the pistol on happened table. Aut nothingnd looked oked back as if it hror. It load no ideaat the mir what all Young and solemn manas about, just the fuss w type Caesfear for. Clean whiteasonable e shirt loar had a roked like he red spot grew slose flag, twly wider. The Japane Funny I d, I though. I heard el a thingthe heavy idn’t fesound of ag happened. I went tbut nothino the wind gunshot, ow and looIt looked back as iftry city. it had noked at win idea whatout. All was gray anuss was abd immobile all the f, even theh the clouds was hailing througf dark. I light compressed mypane, and breathed dhe window-eeply. Not face to ta spot apeverything happens, w quickly Ithought. peared. Ho I heard tgunshot, but nothingound of a happened. He heavy s I threw aers and went out to my shouldthe crowd jacket on at the stras if it had no ideaoked back what all eet. It lothe fuss wusy faces, even the Gray and bsmile filtas about. Ered throualf unconcious. I toedom was hok a couplgh the bore of steps. Funny no one paid e sidewalkany attent acrossthion, I thong. lt consoliugh me, it fe me good.

























Aki Salmela is a Finnish poet and translator of poetry. He has published two books of poetry in Finnish, Sanomattomia lehtiä (2004), Leikitään kotia (2005) and two chapbooks of experimental poetry in English, Word in Progress (2004), available as a download through Tuli&Savu Nihil, and Almost Beyond Recognition (2006), available as a pdf from the author(aki.salmela at welho dot com). His translations include the selected poems of John Ashbery, Valveillaoloa (2004), and the selected poems of Russell Edson, Intuitiivinen matka (2006).

 
 
 
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