Larissa Joonas. Three Poems. Translated by Mark Wingrave

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Larissa Joonas. Three Poems. Translated by Mark Wingrave

Unaware the war had struck the core of me

I see now it’s turned up inside me

so burned up inside of me there’s little left

and still I am like an incendiary shield

an ever present secure border

every loophole sealed by my body

there’s no way a flash of pure hate

will ever break out of me and blaze

the now dumbfounded fearful world.
 

***

I’ve lived so long and acquired so many varied things

what will I do with them when I have

to run from bombs

will they wait for me looking from the window

in the hope I’ll return one day dreaming

they’ll nuzzle their wet noses in my hand

or will there be no time to think of one another

as the world vanishes by the minute

or perhaps the planet

falls through a hole in a pocket

and there’s no one to lift and wipe it free of mud

no one to cup and warm it in their hands

like me now holding my favorite mug

my favourite book

in advance saying goodbye giving thanks for all

those unexpected happy days.
 

***

In the evening elliptic curve cryptography is consoling.

Maths is just as beautiful as when I was a child.

Notebooks crammed with formulae – does my mum have them still?

who knows which of us they’ll survive?

Can elliptic curve cryptography really perish?

Under bombing, in the flames and smoke?

Such smooth young cheeks, elliptic curve cryptography,

such fine fingers, eyes still bright, far too trusting;

such extraordinary light emerges from all of us

those existing or departed,

those thinking or inanimate,

given such light I cannot understand

how anyone can still keep on bearing arms

in the presence of its peaceful radiant smile.
 

***

Три стихотворения

Я не заметила как война попала в меня

но теперь она оказалась во мне

выжгла меня изнутри и меня почти не осталось

но я стою неиспепелимым кордоном

я самая надежная граница

закрываю собой все амбразуры

никакое сияние чистой ненависти

не вырвется из меня и не сожжет

и без того оторопевший напуганный мир.
 

***

Я слишком долго жила и накопила много разных вещей

что я буду с ними делать когда придется убегать от бомбежки

будут ли они ждать выглядывая меня в окне

в надежде что я вернусь мечтая когда-нибудь

уткнуться влажными носами в мою ладонь

или нам некогда будет думать друг о друге

пока ежеминутно исчезает мир

может быть наша планета

просто выпала из небрежного кармана

и никто не поднимет ее из грязи не оботрет

не обхватит теплой ладонью

как я сейчас держу свою любимую кружку любимую книгу

прощаясь заранее благодаря за нечаянные счастливые дни.
 

***

Под вечер находишь в утешение эллиптической криптографии.

Математика так же прекрасна, как в детстве.

Исписанные формулами тетрадки – хранит ли их моя мама? –

кто знает, кого из нас они переживут?

Может ли исчезнуть сама эллиптическая криптография?

В огне, в дыму, под бомбовыми ударами?

Эллиптическая криптография, такие юные гладкие щеки,

тонкие пальцы, глаза, еще ясные, чересчур доверчивые;

какой удивительный свет исходит из всех нас

существующих и ушедших,

мыслящих и неодушевленных,

такой свет, что я не понимаю,

как некоторые продолжают удерживать оружие

под его тихим улыбающимся сиянием?

About the Author:

Larissa Joonas
Larissa Joonas
Kohtla-Järve, Estonia

Larissa Joonas is an Estonian poet, novelist and translator who writes in Russian. She was born in Tatarstan and studied in Moscow, and in 1983 she migrated to Estonia. She has published six collections of poetry, and in 2021 was awarded the Cultural Endowment of Estonia Prize for “Пустоши флайтрадара”. She has also published in numerous journals including: Vozdukh, Volga, Oktyabr, Looming, Vikerkaar, Raduga, and Tallinn. Her work has been translated into Estonian, Finnish, Polish, Italian, Lithuanian, and English.

About the Translator:

Mark Wingrave photo (1)
Mark Wingrave
Melbourne, Australia.

Mark Wingrave is an artist and translator. He received an MA from Chelsea School of Art, and a Scholarship in Painting at the British School at Rome. His translations have been published in journals including Roar, Circumference, Articulation, PEN and anthologies “Russian Free Verse”, “Как нам это пережить” and most recently as contributor to Dmitry Strotsev’s collection “War and Peace”. In 2024 he had an artist residency in Narva, Estonia where he worked on a project with Larissa Joonas.

Larissa Joonas
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Videos
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EastWest Literary Forum Bilingual Poetry & Prose Reading. July 13, 2025.
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