Didn’t I tell you
Not to open your mouth
Not to swallow birds
Their wings flap inside
And tire you
They’re woken before dawn
On trains
The bags under your eyes grow bigger
Listening to songs in temples
You unwind
translated by George Messo
Perihan Mağden
The Seventh Step by Perihan Mağden
I’m a black forgotten bag at the station
I’m tears but no one sees
I spit daylight into night
Istanbul nights stink of men
In the sky, blue mounts its greatest fight
Night presses against the sea, raping it
How your hands twist my heart
I close my windows but it’s useless
I’m the ten thousand children sworn to night
I’m the wild apricot twig robbed of hope
On the sixth step I hold you tight
On the seventh, we part
translated by George Messo
Birds by Perihan Mağden
Deceitful stones these birds
Recalling spring, they sing of it
Morning I opened the window
Winter streets, spring birds
translated by George Messo