Manolis Anagnostakis, Poems

Translations by David Connolly

THESSALONIKI, DAYS OF 1969 A.D.

In Egyptou Street - first turning right
There now stands the Transaction Bank Building
Tourist agencies and emigration bureaus
And kids can no longer play with all the traffic
passing
In any case the kids have grown, the times you knew have
passed
They now no longer laugh, whisper secrets, share trust,
Those that survived, that is, as grave illnesses have
appeared since then
Floods, deluges, earthquakes, armoured soldiers;
They remember their fathers words: you'll experience
better days
It's of no importance in the end if they didn't experience
them, they repeat the lesson to their own children
Always hoping that the chain will one day break
Perhaps with their children?s children or the children of their
children's children.
For the time being, in the old street as was said, there stands
the Transactions Bank -
I transact, you transact, he transacts
Tourist agencies and emigration bureaus
- we emigrate, you emigrate, they emigrate
Wherever I travel Greece wounds me, as the Poet said
Greece with its lovely islands, lovely offices, lovely
churches

Greece of the Greeks.

*****

Original poem in Greek

Θεσσαλονίκη, Μέρες τοῦ 1969 μ.Χ.

Στὴν ὁδὸ Αἰγύπτου -πρώτη πάροδος δεξιά!
Τώρα ὑψώνεται τὸ μέγαρο τῆς Τράπεζας Συναλλαγῶν
Τουριστικὰ γραφεῖα καὶ πρακτορεῖα μεταναστεύσεως.
Καὶ τὰ παιδάκια δὲν μποροῦνε πιὰ νὰ παίξουνε ἀπὸ
τὰ τόσα τροχοφόρα ποὺ περνοῦνε.
Ἄλλωστε τὰ παιδιὰ μεγάλωσαν, ὁ καιρὸς ἐκεῖνος πέρασε ποὺ ξέρατε
Τώρα πιὰ δὲ γελοῦν, δὲν ψιθυρίζουν μυστικά, δὲν ἐμπιστεύονται,
Ὅσα ἐπιζήσαν, ἐννοεῖται, γιατὶ ᾔρθανε βαριὲς ἀρρώστιες ἀπὸ τότε
Πλημμύρες, καταποντισμοί, σεισμοί, θωρακισμένοι στρατιῶτες,
Θυμοῦνται τὰ λόγια τοῦ πατέρα: ἐσὺ θὰ γνωρίσεις καλύτερες μέρες
Δὲν ἔχει σημασία τελικὰ ἂν δὲν τὶς γνώρισαν, λένε τὸ μάθημα
οἱ ἴδιοι στὰ παιδιά τους
Ἐλπίζοντας πάντοτε πὼς κάποτε θὰ σταματήσει ἡ ἁλυσίδα
Ἴσως στὰ παιδιὰ τῶν παιδιῶν τους ἣ στὰ παιδιὰ τῶν παιδιῶν
τῶν παιδιῶν τους.
Πρὸς τὸ παρόν, στὸν παλιὸ δρόμο ποὺ λέγαμε, ὑψώνεται
ἡ Τράπεζα Συναλλαγῶν
- ἐγὼ συναλλάσσομαι, ἐσὺ συναλλάσσεσαι, αὐτὸς συναλλάσσεται-
Τουριστικὰ γραφεῖα καὶ πρακτορεῖα μεταναστεύσεως
-ἐμεῖς μεταναστεύουμε, ἐσεῖς μεταναστεύετε, αὐτοὶ μεταναστεύουν-
Ὅπου καὶ νὰ ταξιδέψω ἡ Ἑλλάδα μὲ πληγώνει, ἔλεγε κι ὁ Ποιητὴς
Ἡ Ἑλλάδα μὲ τὰ ὡραῖα νησιά, τὰ ὡραῖα γραφεῖα,
τὶς ὡραῖες ἐκκλησιὲς
Ἡ Ἑλλὰς τῶν Ἑλλήνων.

About Anagnostakis (Poetry International)

Poems in Greek

Winter 1942 (Greek and English translation)

The Decision 

See also: Two poems by D. Tsaloumas  -  Dimitris Tsaloumas' brilliant - and still highly topical- poem, ASOTOS, B  ("the time for loans and squandering is over - take your children and go to the countryside")

There's nothing much very new to report...

Anagnostakis-Theodorakis, Part 1 (YouTube)

Part 2 (YouTube)