if you had no body
written by: Janina Osewska
translated by: Karol Chojnowski and Desmond Graham
if you had no body
and I was a soul
the painter would paint a safety-pin
fastening clouds
if he wanted
to picture memory
it would be the heat of a meadow
and a stair-rail to heaven
gdybyś nie miał ciała
written by: Janina Osewska
gdybyś nie miał ciała
i ja byłabym duszą
malarz namalowałby agrafkę
spinającą obłoki
gdyby zechciał
zobrazować pamięć
byłby to żar łąki
i poręcz schodów do nieba
Janina Osewska – poet and photographer. Graduated from the Bialystok University of Technology. Completed post-graduate studies at the University of Warsaw in the field of pedagogy and post-graduate studies at the Warsaw University of Technology in the field of computer science. A member of The Polish Writers Association and Academia Europea Sarbieviana.
Published four volumes of poetry: ‘W stronę ciszy’ (Eng. ‘Towards silence’, 2003), ‘Do czasu przyszłego’ (Eng. ‘Until the time to come’, 2007), ‘Tamto’ (Eng. ‘That’, 2015) and ‘Niebieska chwila’ (Eng. ‘Blue moment’, 2017). Her poems were published in numerous journals in the country and abroad. She has participated in international literary festivals in the US, Ireland and Lithuania. Her poems have been translated into English, German, Lithuanian, Czech and Ukrainian. She is a laureate of a Grand Prix (2004) and an award (2005) in the International Poetry Competition in the US. She was also shortlisted at Stokestown International Poetry Prize in Ireland in 2015. In 2017 she was granted a creative scholarship of the Podlaskie voivodeship marshal.
She is also engaged in photography.
She was born and lives in Poland (Augustów).
Published four volumes of poetry: ‘W stronę ciszy’ (Eng. ‘Towards silence’, 2003), ‘Do czasu przyszłego’ (Eng. ‘Until the time to come’, 2007), ‘Tamto’ (Eng. ‘That’, 2015) and ‘Niebieska chwila’ (Eng. ‘Blue moment’, 2017). Her poems were published in numerous journals in the country and abroad. She has participated in international literary festivals in the US, Ireland and Lithuania. Her poems have been translated into English, German, Lithuanian, Czech and Ukrainian. She is a laureate of a Grand Prix (2004) and an award (2005) in the International Poetry Competition in the US. She was also shortlisted at Stokestown International Poetry Prize in Ireland in 2015. In 2017 she was granted a creative scholarship of the Podlaskie voivodeship marshal.
She is also engaged in photography.
She was born and lives in Poland (Augustów).
Latest posts by Janina Osewska (see all)
- Puddles - July 28, 2019
- Morning - July 2, 2019
- On The Terrace - May 12, 2019