Octavio Paz's "Between What I See and What I Say"
This is a sweet poem by a Mexican poet, translated into English for your inspection.
By Octavio Paz (Nobel Prize Winner)
Between what I see and what I say,
between what I say and what I keep silent,
between what I keep silent and what I dream,
between what I dream and what I forget: poetry.
It slips between yes and no,
Says what I keep silent,
Keeps silent what I say,
Dreams what I forget.
It is not speech: it is an act.
It is an act of speech.
Poetry speaks and listens:
It is real, And as soon as I say
It is real, it vanishes.
Is it then more real?
Tangible idea, intangible word:
Poetry comes and goes
Between what is and what is not.
It weaves and unweaves reflections.
Poetry scatters eyes on a page, scatters words on our eyes.
Eyes speak, words look, looks think.
To hear thoughts, see what we say,
Touch the body of an idea.
Eyes close, the words open.
