TRÊS POEMAS DO LIVRO ERA UMA VEZ... (1921)

de Guilherme de Almeida
traduzidos para o inglês por Jessica Cooper (University of Birmingham, Reino Unido)

I asked her a strange question, once upon a time,

after which, my life was dependent on her lips.

And I expected, a gesture, a kiss, a …

                                                           sound…

It could have been a “yes” so simple and profound:

yet she refused to utter the word, so slight

which we believe to rescue, yet it’s known to spite.

It could have been a kiss: yet wishing for she wasn’t

the red venom – which provides a thing so pleasant

which can kill so instantly – a thing of such malice

the delight which only exists in the promise.

It could have been a gesture: and this she did. She

wanted to make a gesture which would delight me!

A finger which she put to her lips… And the rest

of this love story depended on this gesture,

because it was the gesture of silence…

                                                          …That’s why

I said everything in this book and then stayed quiet.

ONCE UPON A TIME…

– “Tell a story, nice and quiet,

like smooth silk under a moonbeam!

Tell a story, nice and quiet,

                       one for me to dream!”

– “Once upon a time Sleeping Beauty…”

– “Tell a brief, brief story,

like the foam on the seawater!

Tell a brief, brief story,

                       one for me to ponder!”

– “Once upon a time Snow White…”

– “Tell an earnest story,

like a sobbing well!

Tell an earnest story,

                       one for me to dwell!”

– “Once upon a time Beauty and the Beast…”

– “Tell a touching story,

           like a twilight goodbye!

Tell a touching story,

                       one for me to cry!”

– “Once upon a time…my life”

CONVERSATION

Sit yourself down. We need to be serious.

No…it’s not like that… This isn’t mysterious:

we love each other greatly – it’s an understood cause;

you already know my life, I already know yours;

we can count on each other, and we have the same tastes

always and, at times, we are almost disgraced

by that we are so trivial like this, so familiar…

Someone already said that we are oh so similar!

But… this is all irrelevant… Listen here: what I want

to say to you is that…is that… Do you want me to be blunt?

Well, all it is, is that…                                                          

Come closer and, merely

just say that you love me very, very, very dearly!

CASA GUILHERME DE ALMEIDA
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