The winter breeze blew
And the cold air threw its stream
Of chilled mist upon our shoulders
And rang in our ears
Dust filled the air
And our bodies went grey
Like we have milled cassava into flour
In the mortar of the season
It is so with the trees and the animals
And some chickens are beaten
To a nest in the sand
Some naked children
Are chattering in the cold
And winter doesn't know
It is beating the weak
But in a week's time
This winter will go.
Nice. I am puzzled by the last statement, though, about winter leaving in a week's time. It lasts until the middle of March, right? And you posted the poem on December 27. Anyway, well written. (Here in Brazil it is summer until the middle of March.)
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
Like Kim Barney I too am puzzled with the last two lines of the poem. Did you mean to say that the winter shall wipe away from the face of earth those unfortunate children?