from Poemas y Antipoemas

Travel Notes

by Nicanor Parra (trans. W.S. Merwin)

I managed to stay away from my job for years.

I devoted myself to traveling, to exchanging impressions with the people I talked to.

I devoted myself to sleeping.

But the scenes I had lived through at other times kept coming to mind.

While I was dancing I would think of ridiculous things:

I would think of lettuces I had noticed the day before

As I was passing the kitchen,

I would think of innumerable fantastic things to do with my family;

Meanwhile the boat had entered the river,

It was forcing its way through a shoal of jellyfish.

These photographic scenes affected my reason,

They obliged me to shut myself in my cabin;

I had to force myself to eat, I rebelled against myself,

I was a permanent menace on board,

Since at any moment I might come out with some nonsense.