“The Last Supper or: From now on, the worms speak for him” / “La Última Cena”

ZP_Jugando al Dominó_Playing at Dominos_José Fuster

Mario Meléndez (nace/born 1971, Chile)

“La Última Cena” / “The Last Supper or: From now on, the worms speak for him”

.

Y el gusano mordió mi cuerpo
y dando gracias
lo repartió entre los suyos diciendo
“Hermanos
éste es el cuerpo de un poeta
tomad y comed todos de él
pero hacedlo con respeto
cuidad de no dañar sus cabellos
o sus ojos o sus labios
los guardaremos como reliquia
y cobraremos entrada por verlos”.

.

And the worm bit into my body

and, giving thanks,

divided it among his brethren, saying:

“Brothers,

this is the body of a poet

– take it, eat all of it,

but do this with respect,

careful not to harm the hair upon his head,

or his eyes, or his lips

– we will keep those as sacred relics

and we’ll charge an entry fee for people to see them.”

.

Mientras esto ocurría
algunos arreglaban las flores
otros medían la hondura de la fosa
y los más osados insultaban a los deudos
o simplemente dormían a la sombra de un espino.
.

While this was going on

some were arranging flowers,

others were gauging the depth of the grave,

and the boldest ones were busy offending the relatives and mourners

– or merely sleeping ‘neath the shade of a hawthorn tree.

.

Pero una vez acabado el banquete
el mismo gusano tomó mi sangre
y dando gracias también
la repartió entre los suyos diciendo
“Hermanos
ésta es la sangre de un poeta
sangre que será entregada a vosotros
para el regocijo de vuestras almas
bebamos todos hasta caer borrachos
y recuerden
el último en quedar de pie
reunirá los restos del difunto”.

.

But once the banquet was finished

the same worm drank my blood

and, also giving thanks,

shared my blood among the rest of those present,

saying:

“Brothers,

this is the blood of a poet,

blood consecrated for you

for the sake of your souls’ rejoicing

– drink all of it until you fall down drunk,

that you may remember:

in high heaven it’s a stubborn fact –

you will be reunited with the remains of the deceased.”

.

Y el último en quedar de pie
no solamente reunió los restos del difunto
los ojos, los labios, los cabellos
y una parte apreciable del estómago
y los muslos que no fueron devorados
junto con las ropas
y uno que otro objeto de valor
sino que además escribió con sangre
con la misma sangre derramada
escribió sobre la lápida
“Aquí yace Mario Meléndez
un poeta
las palabras no vinieron a despedirlo
desde ahora los gusanos hablaremos por él”.

.

And the last-gasp fact…

not only was it the ‘joining-together’ of all of them

with the remains of the deceased –

his eyes, his lips, the hair upon his head,

an appreciable part of his stomach,

the thighs which were not devoured,

together with his clothing

and one or another item of value –

but that, moreover,

it was written in blood – that same spilt blood –

he wrote upon his own headstone:

“Here lies Mario Meléndez, a poet.

Words never came to bid him farewell,

and from now on,

the worms speak for him.”

.

Traducción/interpretación en inglés:   Alexander Best

.     .     .

Mario Meléndez studied journalism at La República University in Santiago, Chile.  In 1993 – the bicentennial of Linares – he won that city’s Municipal Prize for Literature.  In 2003, in Rome, he was made an honorary member of the Academy of European Culture, after speaking at the First International Gathering for Amnesty and Solidarity of The People.  In 2005 he won the Harvest International Prize for best poem in Spanish from the University of California Polytechnic.