Un cor by Johannes Beilharz

In memory of Catherine

On the toe between your middle toe and your little toe of your left foot
(the »ring toe«)


You, as a whole, the one I said I feel like eating entièrement sometimes


And, if I'm not mistaken, an instrument, brass


The on-and-off honking of cars I hear while we’re on the phone, cruising going on along a desolate main street in Haute Marne, yellow lights impinging on dust and the occasional dog


While not a noise is heard behind the hermetic glass panes of my far-away empty house–


Johannes Beilharz, Germany


[Poet's Note: This plays with French to an extent that might make it meaningless for readers not familiar with French, hence a brief explanation:“cor” can refer to a corn, the undesirable thing one might have on a toe, or to a horn (musical instrument). The word “corps” (for body) is pronounced the same as “cor”, and there is yet another phonetic similarity – “un cor” and “encore” (still) – the title plays with.]