
During the heavy months my life caught fire only when
I made love with you.
The firefly too lights up and goes out, lights up and goes out
—by quick glimpses we follow its route
among the olive trees in the darkness of night.
During the heavy months the soul sat
indolent and crushed,
but the body took the nearest way to you.
The night heavens gave off moos.
We stole milk from the cosmos and survived.
—Tomas Tranströmer, The Half-Finished Heaven, translated by Robert Bly (Minneapolis, MN, Graywolf Press, 2001) p.82
by tomas tranströmer during
— 49: I read this poem in the middle of taking a break from my research on divorce and mating strategies, and I paused....
Tomas Tranströmer