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24th March, 2023

Friday Poem – ‘For Natalia’ by Eric Ngalle Charles


This week’s Friday Poem is ‘For Natalia’ by Eric Ngalle Charles from his debut collection Homelands.

For Natalia
I was not destined to leave my bones on
the snow-filled terrains of Vladivostok.
This, I knew for sure, the treaty was already
signed between my maker and I,
although a stubbornness detained me.
I knew my maker would not leave me half-
way, in that lonely existence, swinging
through the doors of insanity, a continual
decent through hell, and her environs,
the snow-filled terrains of Vladivostok.
I hear it again in Old Russian Ballads,
that filled me with hope so I could not give up.
‘Я вас любил: любовь еще, быть может’ *
I loved you, this love can be again. It carried
my spirit home, when I was eating leftovers
from my mother’s dirty pots. I have known love:
when we kissed, I felt your face in my hands.
I was not destined to leave my bones on
the snow-filled terrains of Vladivostok.
Memories are my hiding place, dreams
of hell and heaven intertwine, from here,
I saw the green fields of my distant home.
‘Я вас любил: любовь еще, быть может’
I loved you, this love can be again.
* Alexander Pushkin

Listen to Eric Ngalle Charles discussing Homelands on The Seren Poetry Podcast.