An old favorite of mine: The Beloved by Paul Eluard

She is standing on my eyelids
And her hair is inside mine,
She is the shape of my hand,
She is the color of my eyes,
She is surrounded by my shadows
Like a rock by the sky.

Her eyes always opened
She never lets me sleep
Her dreams in broad daylight
Make sunlight evaporate,
Make me laugh, cry and laugh,
Speak without a thing to say.

translated by Michael Benedikt

5 thoughts on “An old favorite of mine: The Beloved by Paul Eluard

  1. Eluard was a great favorite of mine, and I translated quite a bit of his work when I was a college French major..probably because it is so direct and accessible. It’s nice to read him again now.

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