Ndue Ukaj

Ndue Ukaj (1977) is an Albanian writer, publicist and literary critic. He has been editor of “Identity,” the magazine for art, culture and society, published in Pristina. Ukaj is included in several anthologies of poetry, in Albanian and other languages. He has published five books, including “Godo is not coming”, which won the national award for best book of poetry published in 2010 in Kosovo. He has also won the award for best poems in the International Poetry Festival in Macedonia. His poems and texts are translated into English, Spanish, Italian, Romanian, Finnish, Swedish, Turkish and Chinese. Ukaj is member of Swedish PEN.

 

Noah’s Ark

Noah’s Ark was not emptied

even when the rainbow

scintillated over the sea

and the winds stopped

and the sea slept.

She was not emptied,

even when the white dove

flew before her and,

from the narrow doors

appeared the faces of the

passionate, spurred to feel

all the bright colors

straight away.

 

Noah’s ark fights on,

still drunk with the storm,

Fights the rain of life falling

Nonstop with evil men

who have ruined the soil…

 

Since the people, drunk, overwhelmed

with the desire to ransack the colors

of the rainbow’s arch, trust me,

peace has not overspread us

Though a dove appeared

in the blue blue sky

desire overwhelmed us –

to become drunk with

warm lips, to die there

and preserve eternally

that instant of drunkenness

 

Night fell; the rainbow disappeared

in an orbit of darkness, just like

some thing unknown beyond a great hill.

And darkness enshrouded our eyes,

the same as Eve’s darkness – her

overwhelming desire for the apple

in the tree of wisdom,

Oh God, wouldn’t you think

after that battle between

the rainbow’s arch and the storm

we might have lost our taste

for the forbidden fruit?

 

© 2018 Ndue Ukaj