A tribute to Can Yücel
In her eyes, I was a lost cause from the start
My father was fear to me, my mother, a soothing balm
I was her favorite son, or so it always seemed to me
It was from her I first heard those long tales of the hunt
In life, I loved my mother most of all
I had grown up, so to speak, I brought bread to the table
My mother has died; I am falling, the swing’s rope has snapped
It is true now: I am like a lock without a key
I used to climb her hair, reaching for the stars
I shut myself in rooms, hoping to catch a trace of her scent
I knew she hadn’t the heart to be harsh with her poet son
When my lover left me, she would weep even more than I
My mother was an oyster; a pearl lay within her
The tear in my heart grows wider with every passing day
I can no longer find my mother, not even in my memories
She shouldn’t have followed my father so soon
Leaving the whitewashing of her home unfinished, departing too early
Ever since that day, the thorn reaches me before the rose
As I said, I am a lock that has lost its key
In life, I loved my mother most of all
English Translation by Mesut Şenol