I see

a ring

a slab

a loop

a globe

a tassel

a drop

light

 

I am

the age of the underworld

the depths of the world

the sigh upon laugh

the dark upon light

the veins in the brambles

the skeleton in the thicket

 

I take

flower-beds out of sunlight

eye-holes with my fingers

fish-scales through the chink

tree-tops from the shadow

tortoise-shells for breakfast

fir-cones through the lightning

 

I find

my hair                                inside a flower-pot

my eyes                               below the scullery door

my lips                                upon a wooden board

my neck                              down the milk bucket

my blood                            within the tea kettle

my heart                             under rounds of china

 

I dance as I hang

I shake as I burn

I bathe as I sink

I live as I die.

 

 

By Italo Ferrante