THE STAIRS
Thodhori V Baba
I descended the stairs one by one,
without the light of anticipation,
heartbroken like branches in late autumn,
in these gray rectangles
the departures followed me,
on the patches of time, colorless shoes,
on the torn roads that climbed,
descended, fell, rose.
Why do you cast stars into the pool of sorrows,
in the turmoil, there are only funerals,
pause for a moment and gather
the sparrow's chirps, from children's hands
they await the last crumbs of disdain.
I am silent with the descents, with the stairs,
with the death of birds,
forgotten under the ashes of madness.
Life, tattered and covered in gray hair,
how close this night is to sunset
as I descend the stairs slowly, slowly.
(Translated into English by Kujtim Hajdari)
Thodhori V Baba from Albania started writing around 1975-76 with journalism. He has been publishing articles in the newspapers: "Zeri i rinisë", "Luftari" and "Zeri i Vlora". At the same time, he was the publisher of the children's magazine "Valëza e kaltër", while he was a member of the board of directors of the magazine "Pilgrim of the Light Club - Athens".
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