Growls if you don’t support him
bites if you do
my difficult cousin
with the ravaged bicuspids
and the long way home
Tired of the misunderstanding and loud-voiced humanity
he rents by the year half a desert with a bath and telephone
from where he daily invites folks
to come and see how lonely he is
Turns up totally unexpectedly
in drawers, thoughts, lunchboxes
makes a sudden appearance at the most exciting place in a dream
and points out serious flaws in it
blames you for limply flowing along with the dream
Finds doors suspiciously banal
prefers to come in with the hot water
or through the window
though after first having suffocated the flowers
and sifted the planting dirt for hidden microphones and landmines
then places himself away in a corner
farthest away from the supposedly NATO-friendly sofa
blames me in a hushed voice for doing nothing
to prevent the discovery of America
but burdens himself at the same time
for not doing enough about Colorado beetles
takes off with an apologetic hop
and disappears into the radio
that he forgets to shut after himself
My improbable cousin
who keenly keeps his distance from pointed fingers and shortcuts
who furious that streets are moved since last time
with a slam cuts through the blocks
and that’s why rubble makes him itchy
Those terrible days
when he disquietingly quiet
strangely polite and listening
only asks how you are
how your wife, family and flowers are
leaves courteously an hour before you ask him to
The following days when you sleep miserably
with nightmares where he is not to be found
where you search after him between sleepy jellyfish
obsequious moons and limp mirrors
you go against the dream and wake with the comforter in your mouth
and wish that the evil spirits may find their way back to him
so you again can chat nonsensically with him
again have something unpredictable to stick around
My forbidden cousin
who cannot bear that someone dies
without having told him in advance
takes it as a personal insult
meets up drunk and demonstrative at the burial
demands that the casket be detained
wrests the shovel from the priest and shouts
that if it keeps going on like this
then soon he’ll be the only one left
has to be taken away by force
when he tries to squeeze himself into the casket
like a stowaway
My difficult cousin
who by keeping dilemmas negotiable
bog owls honored
the frying pan and the fire ready
does his part to keep us alive.
By Benny Andersen ©1966 “Den vanskelig fӕtter”
Translated by Michael Goldman
Originally published in English in Bateau, Autumn 2011
