Carlos Drummond de Andrade's

In the middle of the road

In the middle of the road there was a stone
There was a stone in the middle of the road
there was a stone
in the middle of the road there was a stone.
Never should I forget this event
in the life of my fatigued retinas.
Never should I forget that in the middle of the road
there was a stone
there was a stone in the middle of the road
in the middle of the road there was a stone.


Translated by Elizabeth Bishop who said:
I came across this poem recently because a colleague
recommended it to me. It sounds beautiful in the original
Portuguese, much better than the English version, says
my Brazilian friend. Since the English version is the only
one I understand, who am I to argue?
The poem is simplicity itself. I choose to think that it
symbolizes an event that altered the course of the poet's
life, but that's just me.


No meio do caminho

No meio do caminho tinha uma pedra
tinha uma pedra no meio do caminho
tinha uma pedra
no meio do caminho tinha uma pedra.
Nunca me esquecerei desse acontecimento
na vida de minhas retinas tão fatigadas.
Nunca me esquecerei que no meio do caminho
tinha uma pedra
tinha uma pedra no meio do caminho
no meio do caminho tinha uma pedra.