Poem of the Week, week 51: Ingrid Nielsen "This Morning and Secretly (Winter Solstice)"

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Take part in a weekly journey through 52 poems by authors from Norway throughout 2019 – Norway’s year as Guest of Honour.

THIS MORNING AND SECRETLY (WINTER SOLSTICE) I gaze at the aspen tree as the sun turns and I can see nothing of everything which this morning and secretly will turn the sap in the tree will no longer draw back but rise although I can see nothing, what is now hidden will soon reveal itself first as small wounds in the bark so that no one need be in doubt and when the partition is removed we will finally see what is hidden perhaps secret threads between the aspen and the breathing of the hare sitting under the tree or most preferably the gleaming gleaming force which right now causes the sun to turn Translated by John Irons
DENNE MORGENEN OG HEMMELIG (VINTERSOLHVERV) jeg ser på ospetreet idet solen snur og ingenting kan jeg se av alt som denne morgenen og hemmelig vil vende saften i treet skal ikke lenger trekke seg tilbake men stige selv om jeg ingenting kan se, vil det som nå er skjult snart vise seg først som små sår i barken slik at ingen trenger å tvile og når skilleveggen tas bort skal vi endelig få se det skjulte kanskje hemmelige tråder mellom ospetreet og pusten til haren som sitter under det treet eller aller helst den blanke blanke kraften som akkurat nå får solen til å vende

From Ingrid Nielsen (1968), Hemmelig, men aldri som en tyv, Gyldendal Norsk Forlag, Oslo 2016.

Poem of the Week. 52 poems through the year

From the time when the earliest texts were recorded in runic inscriptions, poetry has had a strong position in Norway. By introducing a new poem each week throughout 2019, we aim to highlight the quality and breadth of Norwegian poetry. «Poem of the Week» presents 52 poems, inspired by the changing seasons and the passing of the year. The selection has been made by Annette Vonberg and Tone Carlsen, and consists of poems from the earliest handwritten manuscripts up until today, with a special emphasis on contemporary poetry.

Poem of the week