Prayed In His Own Language
Written by Vladas Braziūnas
Translated from the Lithuanian by Jonas Zdanys
Narrated by Bill Wolak
dried oceans raged and tangled
with shadows of ravaged houses, wild
rivers having left their banks gushed through
meadows soaked with clouds, through pastures
dying God was terrified
was laid up exhausted by wind and uncertainty
in which of the world’s waters the spirit
will flame or disappear, hissing like steel
for which worm will blossom
a bride will open, the plum of innocence will swell
the olive tree will blossom, the lilac
the dahlia will pierce the dragon and locusts will fly
with them the conversation will be short
the language of voracious shadows
Vladas Braziūnas, a Lithuanian poet and translator, has published some fifty collections of poems, translations of European poetry and prose into Lithuanian, and various anthologies and literary and cultural almanacs. He has received many national and international literary prizes and awards for his work. As a photographer, Braziūnas has staged photography exhibitions throughout Lithuania and in other European countries. For more information, please visit his website http://vladas.braziunas.net
Jonas Zdanys, a bilingual poet and translator, is the author of fifty-three books: collections of his own poetry, written in English or in Lithuanian, and volumes of his translations into English of Lithuanian poetry and fiction. He has received a number of prizes, book awards, writing and travel grants, and public recognitions for his own poetry and for his translations. He is currently Poet in Residence and Professor Emeritus of English at Sacred Heart University. For more information, please visit his website https://jonaszdanys.org