Senem Gökel (b. 1982) was born in Nicosia. Her first poems were published in 2005. Her poems, translations and prose have been published in various literary magazines of Cyprus, Turkey and Greece, such as Varlık, Kitap-lık, Cadences, Mandragoras and Eneken. In 2012, she received the Fikret Demirag Poetry Award from the Union of Cyprus Writers. As a result of this award, a bilingual poetry collection (in Turkish, Greek) was published under the general title of Ποίηση / Şiirler (Poems) which consists of poems by two Cypriot poetesses (2012). Her poetry collection in this book is titled as İkinci Jülide / Ζουλιντέ η δεύτερη. Gökel has also participated in several poetry anthologies as well as initiated and organized poetry events such as of Cypriot Poets: Transcending Conflict at the National Poetry Library, London (2017). In addition, she published two poetry pamphlets, one, as the author, and another, as the editor of the titles (Unutmabeni/Forget-Me-Not/Μη με λησμόνει, 2018; Cypriot Poets: Transcending Conflict, 2017.)
Let my delusions stay on the floor. I
want to gather my fears
and fill sacks with them.
Because you, wisely, explained
that you will take them.
That you leave them under the earth
and you shall return without them.
You said, I should wait for you with great patience.
Until, with a marble stone, you crash these visions
as if they were shells of almonds.
Then without looking back
I will pass the corridor
I will arrive at the kitchen for a glass of water
which I will drink in peace
without suspecting
that it comes from those wells
Those wells
Where the unclaimed bodies, along with their stories, were thrown.
© Translated by Niki Marangou
Edited by the poet
Adadaki Kuyular
Vesveselerim yerde kalsın. Ben
korkularımı toplayıp doldurmak istiyorum çuvallara.
Çünkü sen alacağını açıkladın bilgece.
Yerin altına inip
sonunda onlarsız döneceğini.
Büyük bir sabırla beklememi seni.
Bademin kabuğu gibi, mermer taşla,
kıracağını bu görüntüleri.
Çünkü arkama bakmadan
geçebilmek istiyorum koridoru.
Bir bardak su için mutfağa varmak
ve huzur dolu yudumlamak onu
O kuyulardan,
kovalarla çıkmadıkları konusunda kuşku duymadan;
sahipsiz varsayılan bedenlerin
hikâyeleriyle atıldığı kuyulardan.
On Sundays and the Stale Petals
I killed a glance
and wore it on Sundays
I resonated upon water
like the petal of a flower,
staling in vase for days
I kept turning around. Then hushed.
I’ve left a leaky faucet behind;
we should have things to count at nights.
I got used to the sounds:
bees in the sunrise
garden bats in the sundown
sheets waving in the wind, like a whip
and the crackly creak of an empty swing
shaking the pole
of my heart.
© Translated by Zeki Ali
Pazar Günleri ve Eskiyen Yapraklar Üzerine
Bir bakış öldürdüm
ve giydim onu her Pazar
Günlerdir vazoda eskiyen çiçeğin yaprağı gibi
çınladım suyun üstünde
Döndüm durdum. Sustum sonra.
Akıtan bir musluk bıraktım geriye;
sayacak şeylerimiz olmalı geceleri.
Seslere alıştım:
Gün doğumunda arılar
Gün batımında bahçe yarasaları
Rüzgârda dalgalanan çarşaflar, kırbaç gibi
Ve kalbimin direğini sarsan
boş bir salıncağın çatırdayan gıcırtısı.
Evretou1
My hair’s water
The lake of an abandoned village
The length of the reeds
rise
and fall
Far away
a Greek Cypriot shepherd looks on.
© Translated by Oya Akın
Evretou2
Saçımın suyu
Terkedilmiş bir köyün gölü
Yükselir
alçalır
sazlıkların boyu
Uzakta
seyreder Rum çoban.
1 A village within the Paphos district where Turkish Cypriots used to live. Today, the village is uninhabited.
2 Eskiden Kıbrıslı Türklerin yaşadığı, şimdi ise boş olan, Kıbrıs’ın Baf kazasına bağlı bir köy.
For other contributions by of Senem Gökel, please follow the link below:
Published with the permission of Senem Gökel
Photograph by Mehmet Nevzat Erdoğan