TARTU - Poem by Silver Sepp - Tartu2024

Описание: TARTU - poem by Silver Sepp
Translated by Mirjam Parve and Adam Kammerling

The poem was first performed at TarSlämm Poetry Slam in 2018.
This performance was recorded at the New Year’s Eve Concert by Kristiina Ehin and Silver Sepp at the Estonian National Museum in December 2023.

Silver Sepa luuletuse "Tartu" on inglise keelde tõlkinud Mirjam Parve ja Adam Kammerling.
Luuletuse esmaesitus toimus TarSlämmi finaalis 2018.
Salvestatud esinemine pärineb Kristiina Ehini ja Silver Sepa aastalõpukontserdilt ERMis 2023.
Tõlge on valminud tähistamaks Tartu kultuuripealinna 2024.

FULL TEXT:

come, let us tame Tartu
streets full flowing with its freedom
great marshland of Mother river
human-swamp, spring-sun heated

come, let us know Tartu
Luunja’s greenhouse gases glowing calmly
come, let us love Raadi,
where in the past planes nestled with nuclear charges

come, let us tame Tartu
its wild desire for high-rises,
please, tame this Tartu
its skyscraping house prices, sheer and glass sided

listen Tartu
you can raise all the windows the sky can stomach
suspiciously whiffy elevators still washed clean by
Mammaste Maimu and Melliste Triinu
paint kept pristine by Võru Valdur - in his pocket
a green apple from his orchard
a fat worm squirming one bite inside

and after work, over Kassitoome
Tartu, Tartu, we will get wasted
drink coins, shoot the change;
from the ink on our payslips
to the stars constellations tonight,
Tartu will drink itself sated in space

it’s only
SÕIDA TASA ÜLE SILLA - Tartu
a short run gently across the bridge
Tartu, you piston-legged marathon-maniac
cool down: downriver
consider every shivering priority in the Värska sanatorium

from the bus station’s gritty pavilion,
outsiders slip in to the city:
country folk with fingernails filthy like me
like you remember Tartu, no side-eyes from your camp
your past as a bumpkin too stark, too recent

Tartu
remember when millions were spent on your branding?
Võrumaa is still at your ankles
the ancient grey glacial rock: icon, brand ambassador! dropped!
raised then praised, then mocked
and with the rocks descent we are kept from
the higher leagues of city where we can be
anonymous in central square cafes

Ah me! Poor Tartu town
Why can’t the songs of this earth rise up
to heaven, or at least Rainbows FM
Tartu you are Elina Nechayeva’s Eurovision gown
shining in the spotlight, trapped

Tartu
when there is a fault in the machine
you will be on scene, whatever is needed
even if it means a wrench in the wider works of your country

Tartu
here we wake early, emerging for the sun on our faces
to learn every name we give to light as it illuminates its landscapes
see Tartu,
see for yourself
all these weirdos have filled the hall
they have come to listen to poetry

Tartu

here, I check the lottery’s numbers,
pray for luck, study, pass my exams
I will train the melancholy Arno Tali
in the martial art of optimism yet

as city of culture
let us lift our tails,
blow trumpets from the city’s walls and rooves
come, never tame Tartu
wildly itself

**
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