A Depiction of a Spurned Lover
by Ragnheiður Erla Björnsdóttir
he showed up at my door
holding a lullaby in his paw
a gorgeous beast raised
by fathers blue ties gold pins
his sick lungs strangled
he coughed blood on my groin
nailed a surgical mask
to my bathroom wall
he poured salt in my bath
for a healing
I boiled him jelly
from moss
a quarter hour
in a pint of milk
a glass bowlful
of my bare scalp.
Translated by Meg Matich.
Migration
by Ragnheiður Erla Björnsdóttir
Búferli
Migration
We take off on a halcyon day
clumsily packed
fingers, frozen
disinfect
our bodies
from him
jettison the remnants
remove all traces
scour ourselves
out
the house adorned
in guilt tumult
cleanlinoise
but we arise
sigh light
as if he has never touched mom
as if we are whole
Translated by Meg Matich.
Friend
by Hlín Leifsdóttir
Vinur
Friend
Before it’s too late to turn back
he hangs his black coat on the rack in the anteroom
hesitates, just a little
and then sheds his shadow, too
“Wait here, friend,” he says,
gently
as if to a faithful black dog
too innocent to follow
“I won’t be long”
The draught tells him that he won’t be coming back
He doesn’t know that, before he’s even crossed the threshold,
his shadow has snuck away
it bleeds into the crisp darkness outside
When nobody’s watching
Translated by Meg Matich.
Decision
by Hlín Leifsdóttir
Ákvörðun
Decision
When she realizes the situation is hopeless
she decides to leave herself behind in the mirror
its frame, gilded
surrounded by pictures of dead relatives
She shows up without herself at the restaurant
“You look great,” says her enemy.
“You’ve really lost weight.”
Translated by Meg Matich.