Grzegorz Wróblewski


THE HVIDOVRE HOSPITAL

The old men don’t say a word. Two of them lie by the window,
one behind a partition
by the door.

Their children come on Saturdays.
Mister Jensen’s son
appears on Mondays.


POEM FOR YOU

On 8 September 1990
at five past two
in the Kingdom’s capital – Copenhagen
in a flat situated close to
Damhussøen lake
I felt I had to go immediately
and before I got there
I managed to jot down this poem.


SPRING GAMES




THE WORLD RECORD IN DEEP DIVING

Waiting in vain for Jon K.
(Nobody urged him to do it.)


THERAPY

Larsen’s standing in the playground
and flying kites
with children…

Do you remember how yesterday
he ran around the neighbourhood
with a switchblade?

Today he’s recovered
and looks like a split
pumpkin.


(All poems translated from the Polish by Adam Zdrodowski.)


Grzegorz Wróblewski was born in 1962 in Gdansk and grew up in Warsaw, Poland. Since 1985 he has lived in Copenhagen. He has published nine volumes of poetry and two collections of short prose pieces in Poland; three books of poetry, a book of oetic prose and an experimental novel (translations) in Denmark; and selected poems in Bosnia-Herzegovina (Mostar 2002). He has also published a selection of plays. His work has been translated into eight languages.

Adam Zdrodowski, born in 1979, poet and translator, is preparing his PhD on Elizabeth Bishop. His translations include Lifting Belly by Gertrude Stein, prose pieces by Raymond Roussel and William S. Burroughs as well as poems by James Schuyler and Mark Ford. His poems have appeared in: Odra, Dwukropek and Dziennik portowy. He is the author of two collections of poetry: Przygody, etc. (2005, Adventures, etc.) and Jesień Zuzanny (2007, Susanna’s Autumn). He lives in Warsaw.

 
 
 
 
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