PerfectlyWritePoetry: ‘I Bite My Lip, and Begin To Cry’

Sunday 4 May 2014

‘I Bite My Lip, and Begin To Cry’

Israeli poet and novelist, Elisha Porat died last year aged 75.

I have chosen his poem below both in tribute to him as a fine writer whose work is widely available in English translation and also for Yom Hazikaron (Israel’s Remembrance Day for fallen soldiers and those who have died from terrorism).

Porat, like many poets the world over, drew material from his experiences serving in the military.

The Young Students may be found, inter alia, on www.warpoetry.co.uk.

“The Young Students
"The young dead soldiers do not speak.
Nevertheless, they are heard in the still houses:
who has not heard them?
They have a silence that speaks for them
at night when the clock counts."

-- Archibald MacLeish”.
“On the morning of Memorial Day I walk into the class.
"The young dead soldiers do not speak.
Nevertheless, they are heard . . . "
I read to my young students;
My voice echoes in the silent space of the class.
Their eyes are fastened to my lips,
Fear beats upon my face:

“I'm the one who knows,
I'm the one who remembers;
I bite my lip, and begin to cry.

“Abruptly I flee from the classroom,
As the eyes of my young students
Drill into the silent space in my brain.
Speak to me, dear children,
How I truly need to hear
Your voices now”.

Translated from the Hebrew by
the author and Ward Kelley

Elisha Porat
© Copyright 2006

About Elisha Porat

Elisha Porat, the 1996 winner of Israel's Prime Minister's Prize for Literature, was born in 1938 to a pioneer family in pre-State of Israel Palestine and his parents were among the founders of Kibbutz Ein Hahoresh, located on the Sharon Plain near Hadera.

Porat, devoted to the community ideal, was drafted into the IDF (the Israeli army) in 1956 and fought in the Six Day War of 1967; the Yom Kippur War of 1973 and the 1982 Lebanon War.

As a life member of his kibbutz, Porat worked as a farmer as well as a writer and editor for several literary journals. His work in the kibbutz fruit orchard, which contrasted markedly with his military duties, heavily influenced his art. He was married with four adult children - three daughters and a son.

About Archibald MacLeish

Archibald MacLeish (1892 – 1982) was an American poet, writer, and the Librarian of Congress. He is associated with the Modernist school of poetry and received three Pulitzer Prizes for his work.