granddad and granny passed away
they died on the same day
at the same hour
at the same moment —
people said, they died of old age
their hen met its end
and so did their goat and their dog
(their cat was out)
and people said, they died of old age
their cottage fell apart
their shed turned into ruins
and the cellar got covered with dirt
people said, everything collapsed from old age
their children came to bury the granddad and granny
Olha was pregnant
Serhiy was drunk
and Sonya was only three
they all perished, too
and people said, they died of old age
the cold wind plucked yellow leaves and buried beneath them
the granddad, the granny, Olha, Serhiy and Sonya
who all died of old age
Translated from the Ukrainian by Anatoly Kudryavitsky
Від Старості
померли дід і баба
в один день померли
в одну годину
в одну хвилину –
люди говорили, що від старості
здохла їхня курка
їхня коза та собака
(а кішки не було вдома)
і люди говорили, що від старості
розвалилась їхня хата
сарай став руїною
і погріб зверху присипало землею
люди говорили, що від старості розвалились
прийшли їхні діти ховати діда з бабою
Оля була вагітною
Сергій був п’яний
а Соня мала три рочки
і вони теж померли
а люди говорили, що від старості
холодний вітер обірвав жовте листя
і поховав під ним діда, бабу, Олю, Сергія, Соню
які померли від старості
вересень 2014
LYUBA YAKIMCHUK
Lyuba Yakimchuk was born in Pervomaisk, Luhansk oblast, in 1985. She is a Ukrainian poet, screenwriter, and journalist. She is the author of several full-length poetry collections, including Like FASHION and Apricots of Donbas, and the film script for The Building of the Word. Yakimchuk’s awards include the International Slavic Poetic Award and the international “Coronation of the Word” literary contest. Her writing has appeared in magazines in Ukraine, Sweden, Germany, Poland, and Israel. She performs in a musical and poetic duet with the Ukrainian double-bass player Mark Tokar; their projects include Apricots of Donbas and Women, Smoke, and Dangerous Things. Her poetry has been performed by Mariana Sadovska (Cologne) and improvised by vocalist Olesya Zdorovetska (Dublin). Yakimchuk also works as a cultural manager. In 2012, she organized the “Semenko Year” project dedicated to the Ukrainian futurists, and she curated the 2015 literary program Cultural Forum “Donkult” (2015). She was a scholar in the “Gaude Polonia” program of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage (Poland). In 2015, Kyiv’s New Time magazine listed Yakimchuk among the one hundred most influential cultural figures in Ukraine.
