De Gids. Jaargang 120

[p. 325]

Koos Schuur
From now on I change

From now on I change to another language
which is a different landscape and a different way of walking
like going out into the sun after a long illness.
The images of sight are still the same:
a woman walking, a house to live in and a house
to pass by, a horse waiting patiently for
its rider, the first light at dawn and the last
at sundown. But the words change and change
the whole picture.

From now on I change to another language
which is a different sky and a different way of breathing
like going out into the surf after inland pools.
The images of smell are still the same:
wet leaves in the rain, the smoke of a logfire
at nighttime, the perfume of a woman passing
in a crowd, the foreign fragrances of warehouses
in a seaport. But the words change and change
the atmosphere.

From now on I change to another language
which is a different way of life and a different conversation
like leaving the accustomed school for a city office.
The images of sound are still the same:
wind rustling the gumleaves or high up howling
the world into a void, the distant war
of the surf, a woman humming fragments of a tune
like thinking happiness or peace. But the words change
and change the lighting.

From now on I change to another language
and I change like a man after walking for days
through arid country coming to a fertile valley
with a small stream of unthinkably clear water
and he kneels down amidst the green and drinks
(the images of taste are still the same
but the water is new like a new day in a new country
full of sunshine and sky and contented as
a bright sunday morning)