hasso krull

The sea rustles quietly, like a running river,

The sea rustles quietly, like a running river,
it is not a river, it is the sea, clouds run
over the forest, over the juniper thicket, they run like a river,
but inside them is a hole, inside the clouds is a hole

and because of it, flowers of sweetbriar can be seen,
no, they can’t be seen, I lied, but
sweetbriar still flowers, clouds run,
and lie along with me, so earth is black,

so grass is green, lilies yellow,
peonies red, clouds lie about all of it
and so the art of lying hasn’t decayed,
in fact, it has reached new heights,

it has caused the sea to roar, birds to sing,
red peonies to flower, the sea rustles quietly,
and it is no river, the river is raised high into the clouds,
these clouds lie as much as they can, though there is a hole inside them.

trans brandon lussier