Tiffanie Delune, Peeling Off, 2020. Mixed Media on Canvas, 50 x 50 cm. Image Courtesy of Ed Cross Fine Art.
Clementines / Mandarinas
by / por Ana Portnoy Brimmer
after Mario Benedetti inspirado por Mario Benedetti
cardinalI pick two from the low-lying
crisper drawers of my fridge.
cardinalDay mists through the window
cardinallike citrus drizzle, as if the sun
were also thumbed through,
cardinalpeeled. It’s almost November again—
cardinalclementine season.
But honey lingers
cardinalon morning light,
cardinaland leaves refuse the wardrobe
change, dangerous
cardinaluncertainty of weather.
cardinalI sit on the couch and open
Benedetti’s poem, “Gajos.”
cardinalIt helps to think of the heart
cardinalas a clementine. Of its shape
as torn into wedges.
cardinalOnly one remaining
cardinalfaithful to the body
that ripens. He says
cardinalof the heart that while all
cardinalthe other gajos suffer,
flee, there is one
cardinalthat endures, stays
cardinalfor the panic. The balming.
The recovery while ribs
cardinalslacken their grip. I send the poem
cardinalto my father back home
in Puerto Rico, as I’ve grown
cardinalaccustomed to sharing my feelings
cardinalwith him through strangers’
words. He responds
cardinalthat the poem is beautiful.
cardinalAnd the three-dotted snake
of his typing reappears.
cardinal¿Tú tienes ese gajo aún?
cardinalI feel for the rinds perched
on the couch beside me.
cardinalHe knows this question
cardinalprobes a field
long fallow. I leave
cardinalthe message seen
cardinaland unanswered—
place another sliver
cardinalin my mouth.
Tomo dos del cajón de frutas
de mi refrigerador.
El día entra, llovizna cítrica,
por la ventana, como si al sol
también lo mondaran.
Es noviembre nuevamente—
temporada de mandarinas. Pero miel
escurre por luz matutina,
y las hojas se rehúsan al cambio
de vestuario, la incertidumbre
peligrosa del clima.
Me siento en el sofá y abro
el poema de Benedetti, “Gajos.”
Ayuda a pensar el corazón
como una mandarina. Su forma
en rebanadas. Solo una
permaneciendo fiel
al cuerpo que madura.
Dice del corazón que mientras
todos los otros gajos sufren,
huyen, hay uno que perdura,
se queda para el pánico. El bálsamo.
La recuperación mientras
las costillas aflojan su aguante.
Le envío el poema a mi papá
en Puerto Rico, ya que me he
acostumbrado a compartirle
mis sentimientos a través
de las palabras de alguien
más. Me escribe que el poema
es hermoso. Y la serpiente
de su tecleo vuelve
a aparecer. ¿Tú tienes ese gajo aún?
Toco la cáscara
recostada a mi lado
en el sofá. Sabe que al preguntar
hurga un campo
de largo barbecho.
Dejo el mensaje
en visto y sin contestar—
coloco otro gajo
en mi boca.
Published January 3rd, 2021
Publicado el 3 de enero de 2021
Ana Portnoy Brimmer is a Puerto Rican poet-performer, writer and organizer. She holds a BA and an MA from the University of Puerto Rico, and is an alumna of the MFA program in Creative Writing at Rutgers University-Newark. She is the winner of the 92Y Discovery Poetry Contest 2020, and her chapbook, To Love An Island, is the winner of YesYes Book's 2019 Vinyl 45 Chapbook Contest, an expanded version of which will be released in both English and Spanish editions by YesYes Books and La Impresora in 2022. Her work has been published or is forthcoming in The Paris Review, Gulf Coast, Society and Space, Periódico de Poesía-UNAM, Foundry Journal, Sx Salon, The Breakbeat Poets Volume 4: LatiNEXT, among others. Ana resides in Puerto Rico, and lives for dance parties and revolution.
Ana Portnoy Brimmer es una poeta-performera, escritora y organizadora Puertorriqueña. Obtuvo un BA y MA de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, y es egresada del MFA en Redacción Creativa de Rutgers University-Newark. Es la ganadora del 92Y Discovery Poetry Contest 2020, y su manuscrito, To Love An Island, es el ganador del YesYes Books 2019 Vinyl 45 Chapbook Contest, una versión ampliada del cual será publicada en Inglés y Español por YesYes Books y La Impresora en el 2022. Su trabajo ha sido publicado o está por ser publicado en el Paris Review, Gulf Coast, Society and Space, Periódico de Poesía-UNAM, Foundry Journal, Sx Salon, The Breakbeat Poets Volume 4: LatiNEXT, entre otros. Ana reside en Puerto Rico, y vive por el bailoteo y la revolución.
Tiffanie Delune is a French Belgo-Congolese artist based in London. Delune has exhibited all over the world, including 16/16 in Lagos, Nigeria, The Gramophone Works in London, England, and Cité de la Mode et du Design in Paris, France. Her work has been acquired by the Fondation Gandur Pour l’Art in Geneva and the New York-Presbyterian Alexandra Cohen Hospital For Women And Newborns in New York City. In 2020, Delune had exhibits at Ed Cross Fine Art in London, Art x Lagos and Seeds of Light, both of which can be viewed online.