I have crossed continents to come to Africa

But the day never came

            that mountains became(/were) hills

            that rivers became(/were) rivulets

            which could be hopped over

I have not reached you my love

you are like a distant star

it is as if between us there has grown

            a wall of darkness.

When I grasp you, my hands do not grasp

but a corpse that died without justice

            as if I embraced my blood in a stone/rock

            in a house that was flooded by a storm

            that during the night stands attentively

            and in the morning has got stuck far away

                                                                  waiting on the road.

 

 The years between us have streched/extended: blood and fire/heat,

The bridges I climbed that turned to be walls

And you, you have sank at the bottom of the sea

                                                        so that I could not touch you.

Oysters have peeled me, cutting my veins/nerves

                                                            in the arms/hands,

And I call (out):

                        You Africa

                        the love of my soul,

                        the friend of larva/maggot and darkness,

                        I have wandered many years looking for you

                        and my journey has not yet been interrupted

                        you who covered yourself in a corpse your (whole) life.

 

I have crossed continents to come to Africa

but the day never came

that bridges could be crossed.

You who sleep with me in the bed

you (are) like a distant star in the sky

doors that are closed from inside

And I stand outside

                           I wait in the cold.