“Crisis” by Gerardo Deniz (translated by Mónica de la Torre)

Evangelista Cicindelli had no dark side. In vain
they spoke to him about Teilhard de Chardin, about mysteries,
the mysteries of the sea,
of life,
unexplained by positivism. In vain
they tried to shake his stool enameled white,
they spat in the histological preparations while he was out having lunch.

By the rocky edge,
the ruinous and unfinished mansion, without windowpanes
so you can face the threatening sea
and welcome the wind carrying saltpeter and saliva, excoriate
the water’s torso,
and welcome your name between the clamor of the wind,
Evangelista.

No one inhabited the house. Yet this afternoon from the waves spring forth
cohorts of underwater beings; green ooze
invades the roofless ballroom, cornering you flawlessly.
You see, Evangelista? So many missing links. What do you know? It’s not funny, no
to have to look at so many fixed eyes, some of them pedunculated.
And you, who on that occasion said:
—There are stupid gods and gods
even more stupid; all of them have quirks when it comes to nutrition,
all of them explain too much;
………………………………………………………..but the worst ones
are those whose zeal is so extreme as to make them look into things that are not
……………..their business;
I call them urologist gods.

First the vermin tune
strings and castanets, kettledrums, French horns;
three times they repeat the nasty melody that chased after you last summer
down the alleys of Naples
—and the big uncouth one raising the shrill trumpet.
Did you see him, Evangelista? Soon they’ll go back to the sea.

Over the professor’s character
……………………………..Falls the Shadow
Between the malacology course and the risotto
……………………………..Falls the Shadow
He was fishing for specimens with two disciples when the net turned heavy.
The repulsive, almost Baphometic beast, with pulsations and ostioles going pfff,
furiously dropped in the hands of Mercucio Tartaglia a trumpet which was skooped
up by
………………the master with a sinister laugh.
Dissection.
The professor published a monograph in the Zeitschrift für die vergleichende Morphologie der
………………wirbellosen Tiere.
He took all of his children and nephews to the merry-go-round.
Evangelista Cicindelli had no dark side.

© LIT Magazine Issue #2, 2000