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A Poem by Georges Schehadé, in English and French

From the Collection Poetries, Translated by Austin Carder

By Georges Schehadé, translated by Austin Carder

July 29, 2021

Ma mère allumait les lampes pour éloigner les ombres de nous
Elle comptait notre âge sur les doigts quand l’horloge frappait ses coups
Ma mère parlait du temps qui passe en souriant
— Et les hommes qui la suivaient étaient ses anges

Maintenant que la lune est morte Où êtes-vous merveilleuses pensées
Amour aux dents de dragées
Enfance qui pleurez sur mes joues

My mother lit lamps to chase the shadows from us
She counted our ages on her fingers as the clock struck
My mother smiled as she spoke of the past
— The men who followed her were her angels

Now that the moon is dead Where are you wondrous thoughts
Love with sugar-coated teeth
Childhood crying on my cheeks

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From Poetries by Georges Schehadé, translated by Austin Carder. Published by The Song Cave, 2021.

Georges Schehadé, translated by Austin Carder

Georges Schehadé (1905-1989) was a Lebanese poet and playwright, born in Alexandria, Egypt, who wrote in French. Though better known for his work as a dramatist, Schehadé was first and foremost a poet, producing seven volumes of short poems collected under the title Les Poésies. The Académie Française awarded him the inaugural Grand Prix de la Francophonie in 1986. Poetries, recently published by The Song Cave, marks the first time that this selection of poems has been translated into English. Austin Carder is a writer and translator based in Philadelphia. He received his BA in English at Yale and is a PhD candidate in the department of Comparative Literature at Brown. He is also an Editor at Caesura (caesuramag.org).