drags itself along the timber walkway in Harlingen rows across the sea in
hopes of reaching the horizon soon. The black-headed gulls
slice sails on the masts When the boats leave harbour the sky
will consist of few remnants of fabric and we shall hold on to
the fishing rods and peer inside where the dead have been robbed
of their bones Question: What would you take with you from a
flooded house? Answer: The flood
But meanwhile we are rich enough and have instructed the oysters
to produce pennies in place of pearls
Translation: Delphine Lettau
Guy Helminger was born in 1963 in Esch / Alzette (Luxemburg) and studied German Literature and Philosophie in Luxemburg, Heidelberg and Cologne. Since 1985 he has been living in Cologne and working as a writer. He has received the Prix Servais, the 3sat Prize, the Dresden Poetry Prize, the Merano Poetry Prize and the Gustav Regler Prize, among others, for his work.