Live Encounters Poetry & Writing Volume Four November-December 2024
A Talking Fish Head, poems Carmen-Francesca Banciu.
Poem in English and German.
A Talking Fish Head
Today was damp and cold
And I barricaded myself
in your kitchen
Quietly crafting
Writing
Baking
Making cream cheese
Cooking soup from a giant fish head
Photographing the head
To show you
Only the head
And teeth
And eyes
Looking sardonic
His teeth ravenous
His smile
Cynical
Directed at me
Beyond his demise
He still wants to warn
Predators – you, humans
Eternally insatiable
Just before the end of the world
You still want
And at any price
To possess the world
Man, oh, man
Your fairy tale ends badly
Says the fish head to me
I fear the fish head
And his warning.
He lies on the plate
And weeps
His beauty touches my heart
And yet from him I have cooked
A wonderful soup
I am a predator
Humans are predators
Even those who consider themselves
To be better humans.
Ein Sprechender Fischkopf
Heute war der Tag feucht und kalt
Und ich habe mich
In Deiner Küche verschanzt
In Ruhe gewerkelt
Geschrieben
Gebacken
Frischkäse gemacht
Aus einem riesigen Fischkopf
Suppe gekocht
Den Kopf fotografiert
Um ihn Dir zu zeigen
Nur Kopf
Und Zähne
Und Augen
Hämisch sein Blick
Seine Zähne reißhungrig
Sein Lächeln
Zynisch
Gegen mich gerichtet
Über sein Ableben hinaus
Will er noch warnen
Raubtier – Du Mensch
Ewig unersättlich
Kurz vor dem Weltuntergang
Willst Du immer noch
Und um jeden Preis
Die Welt besitzen
Mensch, oh, Mensch
Dein Märchen geht böse aus
Sagt der Fischkopf zu mir
Ich fürchte mich von dem Fischkopf
Und vor seiner Warnung
Er liegt auf dem Teller und weint
Seine Schönheit berührt mein Herz
Und doch habe ich aus ihm
Eine wunderbare Suppe
gekocht
Ich bin ein Raubtier
Menschen sind Räuber
Auch die, die sich
Für die besseren Menschen halten.
© Carmen-Francesca Banciu
Carmen-Francesca Banciu, born in Romania, is a German and Romanian novelist, poet, publicist, artist and lecturer in creativity and creative writing. She occasionally writes in English and Romanian. After receiving the International Short Story Prize of the City of Arnsberg for her story “The Radiant Ghetto” (1985), she was banned from publishing her works in then-communist Romania. In 1991, she accepted the DAAD’s Berlin Artists’ Program invitation and moved to Germany. She was writer-in-residence at Rutgers University (US) from 2004 to 2005 and at the University of Bath (UK) in 2009. She currently lives in Berlin and works as a freelance author.
Her books explore the author’s geographical, psychological, and linguistic migrations in Europe during and after the fall of communism. Her main character, Maria-Maria, evolves throughout the books, freeing herself from the chains of the past and stepping out of the victim role to shape her own destiny. The themes of reconciliation, peace, and forgiveness are essential and represent a constant concern in her books. Banciu created the Course in Creativity and Creative Writing, “TOUCHING LIFE—Das Leben berühren.”She has been awarded numerous grants and prizes. Her works have been translated into several languages. Her novel in verse, “Farewell, Dear Comrades and Lovers!” was longlisted for the German Book Prize 2018.