SINA AKYOL
(1950)

LYRICS (4)
Stay here. In the noon courtyard.

Settle down in the simple language of time.

Take an interest in horizon watching.

Experiment with the blue, the white, the day.

Appreciate the oleander! Suprise me
by murmuring, "Its poison is the ointment
I apply to my skin."

Try to translate
that feverish insect of August
and its sweaty song into Turkish.

Learn the pretty rich
style of
washing the courtyard, pruning the vine,
walking barefoot.

Stay here. In the enduring time.
In the noon courtyard.

Absolve from your body. Undress
until you are your own self.
Pour refreshing water down year head.

Sleep soundly.

Translated by Suat Karantay

 

Sina Akyol was born in Ankara in 1950 and graduated from the School of Journalism there. He worked at TRT (Turkey Radio and Television Corporation), in advertising and as a civil servant and copywriter. He is at present a producer at TRT Izmir radio. His first poem, “Ölmek” (“To Die”) was published in the journal Çağrı (1967) and later he appeared in the journals Meltem, Güney, Forum, Dost, Yansıma and Yazko Edebiyat. His poems have been translated into English and French. He writes an imagist poetry with very few words, yet which has a conversational style. His poems reflect the viewpoint of a person who is not content with city life, and longs for nature. His collections of poetry include: Su Tadında (Water Taste, 1980), Lokmanla Geçen Şen Günlerim (My Happy Days with Lokman, 1982), Haytalarla Hatmiler (Marshmallows With Rascals, 1990), Ayda Tümör İzleri (Signs of Tumor on the Moon, 1994), Avluda (In the Courtyard, 1996), Meğer Söz Gümüş (The Word Is Silver They Say, 1996), İkindi Kitabı (Afternoon Book, 1999), Belki Çiçek Dağına (Collected Poems, Maybe To the Flower Mountain, 1999) and Meğer Söz Bakır (The Word is Copper They Say, 2006).