Yevgeny Yevtushenko Black Poems
- 1. My Universities
I learned not only from those
who brightly beam out of golden frames,
but from everyone whose ID photo
didn't come out quite right.
... - 2. My Handwriting
My handwriting is not calligraphic.
Not following the rules of beauty,
words stagger about,
reeling,
... - 3. I Would Like
I would like
to be born
in every country,
have a passport
... - 4. Black Bandillera
The flower of a fighting toro
is mourning, affixed since birth.
The path of a fighting toro
is the arena, and later the scales.
... - 5. Alder Catkin
Whenever the wind
drops an alder catkin into my palm,
or a cuckoo calls merrily,
with trains screaming by,
... - 6. The Mrk Of Cain
The poor pilgrims dragged themselves wearily
along to Mecca through gray Syria,
huddled and doubled up
the pilgrims stumbled along-
... - 7. The Torments Of Conscience
We live, dying is not our business,
shame is another lost episode,
but like an unseen madonna, conscience
is standing at every crossroad.
... - 8. Monologue Of An American Poet
A loved one leaves
like air from the lungs-
vapor amid the final dry snowflakes,
the black branches clicking and sagging
...
