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Desert Life
Translation by Shon Arieh-Lerer
At the spout of the pump lies a trough,
at the spout of the pump a dead man rises.
Early dawn, with metal clanging,
the dead man wanders through the windmill’s shadow.
The pumping rod screeches.
The tail turns, clangs,
casts shadows.
Its iron innards stir, turning the pumping, coughing wheel.
Who sits in its shining heart, driving the rod into the ground?
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- About the translation:
- » Read translator's notes
- Poet:
- Wiliguru Pambardu
- Translator:
- Shon Arieh-Lerer
- Original language:
- Yindjibarndi
- Issue:
- Series 3 No.14 - Polyphony
About the author
Original poet
Wiliguru Pambardu
The Yindjibarndi poets Pambardu and Parraruru are considered the foremost twentieth-century bards of the Western Australian Pi...
» Read moreTranslator
Shon Arieh-Lerer
Shon Arieh-Lerer's poems, translations, and reviews have appeared in magazines such as Circumference, Beloit Poetry Journal, C...
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