i was scared of roe their keen sense of smell
they lie in wait for the rosebuds they keep guard
when in the summer i weave you a wreath under my breath
they surround the house with a thick cordon and pull
words through the keyhole to their nostrils
then in the middle of winter the poem larvae crawl
around their heads find a place for themselves
for pupation and take off escape
verses fly unashamedly round the whole village
the flutter of wings leaves on the snow
colourful traces and bruises as if after a typhoon
and in front of the house they’re scattered the remains of the roses
some letters syllables sometimes whole words
From The tram dream (Księgarnia Akademicka, Kraków 2013)
Translation from Polish by Sarah Luczaj