Between Games
July 6, 2023A Forgetful Number
July 6, 2023
Anne Pennington
Until her last breath she enlarges
Her Oxford house
Built in Slavonic
Vowels and consonants
She polishes the corner-stones
Until their Anglo-Saxon shine
Begins to sing
Her death is like a short breath-stop
Under the distant limetrees of her friends
Vasko Popa (1922-1991) was a Serbian poet associated with the Yugoslav Surrealist movement. Popa's poetry often dealt with themes of death, rebirth, and the supernatural. His work was deeply influenced by Serbian folklore and mythology. Popa was also a translator, and he introduced Serbian readers to the work of many foreign poets, including T.S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, and Dylan Thomas. He is considered one of the most important Serbian poets of the 20th century.