De Tweede Ronde. Jaargang 9

[p. 80]

De zee
Göran Palm^*
(Vertaling Lisette Keustermans)

Ik sta voor de zee.
Daar is ze.
Daar is de zee.
Ik kijk ernaar.
De zee. Ja, ja.
't Is net als in het Louvre.

* Göran Palm, Zweeds links-geëngageerd dichter, geboren 1931, behoorde tot de stroming ‘De nieuwe eenvoud’. Hij zou bovenstaand gedicht vermoedelijk niet tot het Light Verse rekenen. In 1970 werd in Kiel een academisch congres gehouden over Scandinavische lyriek. Bij die gelegenheid werden zeven theorieën gepresenteerd over de betekenis van ‘De zee’.

Havet

Jag står framför havet.
Där är det.
Där är havet.
Jag tittar på det.
Havet. Jaha.
Det är som på Louvren.

Barmaids are diviner than mermaids

Fish are very good at swimming,

And the ocean with them is brimming.

They stay under water all year round,

And they never get drowned,

And they have a gift more precious than gold,
Which is that they never get cold.
No, they may not be as tasty as venison or mooseflesh,
But they never get gooseflesh.
They have been in the ocean since they were roe,
So they don't have to creep into it toe by toe,
And also they stay in it permanently, which must be a source of

great satisfaction,

Because they don't have to run dripping and shivering up and

down the beach waiting vainly for a healthy reaction.

Indeed when I think how uncomplicated the ocean is for fish my

thoughts grow jealous and scathing,

Because when fish bump into another fish it doesn't wring from

them a cry of Faugh! and ruin their day's bathing.

No, if it's a bigger fish than they are, they turn around and beat it.
And if it's littler, they eat it.
Some fish are striped and some are speckled,
But none of them ever heard of ultra-violet rays and felt it neces-

sary to lie around getting sand in their eyes and freckled.

Oh, would it not be wondrous to be a fish? No, it would not be

wondrous,

Because we unmarine humans are at the top of the animal king-

dom and it would be very undignified to change places with

anything under us.