OVERDUE AUTOBIOGRAPHY

(a fragment) 

Poem by Antonio Miranda

Translated by Miriam Adelman

When they pushed me into the world

I shook off my  placenta and  asked myself

what hell i had fallen into.

As they rubbed me down with celestial oils

I queried, what shit this world

and made a run for it.

                      They pinched  my buttocks,

                      stuffed a host down my throat,

                      some books in my hand

                      and  they said,

                      this is your house

                      this is your country

                      respect your father your mother

here´s your horoscope

you´ll join the army

just like your cousin

and they came after me with their sticks

and their words  saying

this boy is a demon

this boy is sick

and they stuck me in their

standard attire and sent me

to public school

but i would run off

dive into the river, come up

to jerk off under the shade

of the orange tree

My wide chest legs arms legs

just me running and running

and those voices clamoring

It’s useless

It’s useless

So  I left home,

ran off,  got fingerprinted by the   police

and  all the while there they were,

wide-eyed with their questions, wanting to know

what on earth I had to run from.