Croatian poet Vesna Parun (1922-2010)
is one of the classics of Croatian literature. She is also the first woman in Croatia that wrote for a living. She has published 20 books of poetry, and her most common subject was love. She also wrote for children and her work has been translated into several languages. She has won numerous literary awards, and to me her poem "You who have more innocent hands" is my favourite and most remembered. Here I enclose the original Croatian text of that poem as well as the English translation. An English translation is available on the internet, but neither I nor my daughter were completely happy with it, so we refined it a bit.
The reason I decided to publish this poem is my desire to first introduce my daughter to this important Croatian poet, then to remind my friends from Croatia of the verses they must have heard somewhere, but also to introduce my other friends to them. I believe that you will find in them the strength and beauty that I wanted to share with you.
Love
Kristina
Tuesday April 27th, 2021
You with hands more innocent
You with hands more innocent than mine
And you who are wise as calmness.
You who are able to read from his forehead
Better than I his loneliness,
And who can remove slow shadows
Of hesitancy off his face
Like the spring breeze removes
Shadows of clouds sailing over the hill.
If your embrace encourages the heart
And your thighs stop the pain,
If your name is rest
To his thoughts, and your throat
Is the shade of his resting place,
And the night of your voice an orchard
Still untouched by storms.
Then stay by him
And be more devout than all
Who have loved him before you.
Be afraid of the echo approaching
The guiltless love beds.
And be gentle upon his sleep
Under an invisible mountain
On the edge of a roaring sea.
Walk over his beach. May you be approached by
Saddened dolphins.
Wonder around his woods. Friendly lizards
Won't do you harm.
And thirsty snakes which I have tamed
In front of you will be humble.
May the birds which I kept warm sing to you
In the sharp frost nights.
May you be caressed by the boy whom I protected
From the spy on a deserted road.
May you smell the flowers I have watered
With my tears.
I have not encountered the most beautiful age
Of his manliness. His fertility
I have not held against my bosom
Which have been plundered by views
Of the cattle chasers at fairs
And greedy bandits.
I will never take by the hand
His children. And the stories
I had long ago prepared
I might tell through tears
To little poor bears
Left in the black wood.
You with hands more innocent than mine,
be gentle upon his sleep
which had remained harmless.
But do let me see
His face, as upon him will
descend unknown years.
And tell me from time to time something about him,
so I don’t have to ask strangers
whom ponder on me, and neighbours
who pity my patience.
You with hands more innocent than mine,
Stay by his bedside
and be gentle upon his sleep.
Hrvatska pjesnikinja Vesna Parun (1922-2010) se ubraja medju klaskie hrvatske literature. Ona je ujedno prva zena koja je u Hrvatskoj zivjela od svog pisanja. Objavila je 20 knjiga poezije, a najcesca tema joj je bila ljubav. Pisala je I za djecu I prevodila sa nekoliko jezika. Dobitnica je brojnih knjizevnih nagrada, a meni je njezina pjema “Ti koja imas nevinije ruke” najdraza I najzapamcenija. Ovdje prilazem orginalni hrvatski tekst te pjesme kao I engleski prevod. Na internetu je dostupan engleski prijevod, ali niti ja niti moja kcer nismo sa njim bile u potpunosti zadovoljne pa smo ga malo doradile.
Razlog sto sam odlucila objaviti ovu pjesmu je moja zelja da prije svega svoju kcer upoznam sa tom vaznom hrvtskom pjesnikinjom, zatim da podsjetim svoje prijatelje iz Hrvatske na stihove koje su sigurno vec negdje culi, ali I da upoznam svoje ostale prijatelje sa njima. Vjerujem da cete u njima naci snagu I ljepotu koje sam zeljela podijeliti sa vama.
S ljubavlju,
Kristina
Utorak, 27. travnja 2021.
Ti koja imaš nevinije ruke
Ti koja imaš ruke nevinije od mojih
i koja si mudra kao bezbrižnost.
Ti koja umiješ s njegova čela čitati
bolje od mene njegovu samoću,
i koja otklanjaš spore sjenke
kolebanja s njegova lica
kao što proljetni vjetar otklanja
sjene oblaka koje plove nad brijegom.
Ako tvoj zagrljaj hrabri srce
i tvoja bedra zaustavljaju bol,
ako je tvoje ime počinak
njegovim mislima, i tvoje grlo
hladovina njegovu ležaju,
i noć tvojega glasa voćnjak
još nedodirnut olujama.
Onda ostani pokraj njega
i budi pobožnija od sviju
koje su ga ljubile prije tebe.
Boj se jeka što se približuju
nedužnim posteljama ljubavi.
I blaga budi njegovu snu
pod nevidljivom planinom
na rubu mora koje huči.
Šeći njegovim žalom. Neka te susreću
ožalošćene pliskavice.
Tumaraj njegovom šumom. Prijazni gušteri
neće ti učiniti zla.
I žedne zmije koje ja ukrotih
pred tobom biti će ponizne.
Neka ti pjevaju ptice koje ja ogrijah
u noćima oštrih mrazova.
Neka te miluje dječak kojega zaštitih
od uhoda na pustom drumu.
Neka ti miriše cvijeće koje ja zalivah
svojim suzama.
Ja ne dočekah naljepše doba
njegove muškosti. Njegovu plodnost
ne primih u svoja njedra
koja su pustošili pogledi
goniča stoke na sajmovima
i pohlepnih razbojnika.
Ja neću nikad voditi za ruku
njegovu djecu. I priče
koje za njih davno pripremih
možda ću ispričati plačući
malim ubogim medvjedima
ostavljenim u crnoj šumi.
Ti koja imaš ruke nevinije od mojih,
budi blaga njegovu snu
koji je ostao bezazlen.
Ali mi dopusti da vidim
njegovo lice, dok na njega budu
silazile nepoznate godine.
I reci mi katkad nešto o njemu,
da ne moram pitati strance
koji mi se čude, i susjede
koji žale moju strpljivost.
Ti koja imaš ruke nevinije od mojih,
ostani kraj njegova uzglavlja
i budi blaga njegovu snu.
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