Spring is icumen in
For JK
I called your name
And the goldfinches twirled ribbons
Of song
Scissoring the air
A robe
Of silk
Of fire
Emptying their hollow bones of music
Offering the chance melody of twilight
I called your name
And the goldfinches stitched its syllables to the stars
And bore you on wings of flame
Now you are the gold of dusk,
The silence where songs happen.
Steve Komarnyckyj‘s literary translations and poems have appeared in Index on Censorship, Modern Poetry in Translation and many other journals. He is the holder of two PEN awards and a highly regarded English language poet whose work has been described as articulating “what it means to be human” (Sean Street). He runs Kalyna Language Press with his partner Susie and three domestic cats.