I closed my eyes so as not to see
I closed my eyes to cry
from no longer seeing you.
Where are your hands and the hands of caresses
where are your eyes the four whims of the day
with everything to lose you are no longer there
to dazzle the memory of the nights.
With everything to lose I see myself live.
translated by Stuart Kendall
20th Century French Surrealist poetry
Black Joy by Jean Arp
flowers are blackened with joy
the sky is beautiful as flame
i’m transported by just one day’s worth of flower-labor
how would you like to fly away with me
how would you like a day’s worth of lightning-flashes
how would you like a flower identical with heaven
how would you like several flowers like lightning-flashes
how would you like a fiery sky
hovering just beyond my head
is you my lovely flower-labor
hovering just beyond my head
is you my lovely black flame of joy
translated by Michael Benedikt
Leonard Durso 