Donald Traxler's Poetry

Monday, May 25, 2020

Memorial Day, 2020: Lawrence

Lawrence W. Jacobson, my father's first cousin, died on 10 February 1944, bravely fighting the Nazis. My father never mentioned him, and I had never heard of him until a couple of years ago. I doubt that anyone else is mentioning him, or thinking about him today, so I'll do it now.

"He who watches over you will not slumber or sleep."

May his memory be for a blessing.

Below is a poem I wrote, shortly after learning of Lawrence Jacobson's existence.

Lawrence

You were Dad's first cousin,
but he never mentioned you,
said little about James,
your father,
perhaps because you kept alive
what others let die.
On 10 February 1944
you traded Horton,
Kansas, for a bombing run
over Brunswick,
Germany, with the roaring
of the bomber's engines
in your ears.
You would not see
115 East 15th Street
again, nor the girl
you left behind.
They would give your
Service Number,
17128088,
an Air Medal
and a Purple Heart
that you
would never see.
The roaring
of the bomber's engines
has stopped.
10 February 1944
was a Thursday.
Sunrise: 06:12.
Sunset: none.

Donald Jacobson Traxler
Oct. 4 2018

nigadv iga / Every Day (Udugi, en, fr, es, pt)

nigadv iga ayv hagatase galvlo-adelohohisdine
gadolequi na gili
gayula unvtase.

ᏂᎦᏛ ᎢᎦ ᎠᏴ ᎭᎦᏔᏎ ᎦᎸᎶ-ᎠᏕᎶᎰᎯᏍᏗᏁ
ᎦᏙᎴᏈ Ꮎ ᎩᎵ
ᎦᏳᎳ ᎤᏅᏔᏎ.

Every day I check the weather forecast
to find out what the dog
already knows.

Chaque jour je regarde les prévisions météo
pour découvrir ce que le chien
sait déjà.

Todos los días miro el pronóstico del tiempo
para descubrir qué es que el perro
ya sabe.

Todo dia eu olho para a previsão do tempo
para descobrir o que o cachorro
já sabe.

Sunday, May 24, 2020

If There Were Two of Me

If there were two of me,
would one be older and wiser,
stronger or weaker,
would they be a balance,
or a doubling of force?
And finally, would the world
be better for it,
or worse?

Saturday, May 23, 2020

edolidohisgi igohida hawina / Time Traveler (Udugi, en, fr, es, pt)

nvlasanete doyegi
nudale igohida nidvlenvda,
atsvyai usganole agisdase udotlvsvne,
anvdadisdanete
nigadvne.

ᏅᎳᏌᏁᏖ ᏙᏰᎩ
ᏄᏓᎴ ᎢᎪᎯᏓ ᏂᏛᎴᏅᏓ,
ᎠᏨᏯᎢ ᎤᏍᎦᏃᎴ ᎠᎩᏍᏓᏎ ᎤᏙᏢᏒᏁ,
ᎠᏅᏓᏗᏍᏓᏁᏖ
ᏂᎦᏛᏁ.

emerging from another time,
he slowly takes form,
remembering
everything.

sortant d'une autre époque,
il prend lentement forme,
se souvenir
tout.

emergiendo de otro tiempo,
lentamente toma forma,
recordando
todo.

emergindo de outra época,
ele lentamente toma forma,
lembrando
tudo.

I have created a new Facebook group, udugi nigadv nasgihai (Udugi for All), for all who would like to learn the Udugi language. All are welcome.

Friday, May 22, 2020

84,000 Visits and Twenty-eight Chapters

Good evening, my friends (or whatever time of day it is where you are). It has been a busy day here, as most of them are. Today we passed the milestone of 84,000 visits to this blog. I am proud to say that those visits have come from more than a hundred of the world's countries. Thank you, all of you, for your continued interest and enthusiasm.

The "twenty-eight" in the title of this post refers to the number of chapters in the Gospel According to Matthew, which as most of you will have noticed, I am currently translating into Udugi. I've translated approximately two and a half of those chapters so far, so the project will last for a while.

Another project, that of supplying the vowel points (at least approximately) for Shem-Tob's Hebrew Matthew, is on hold for the present.

With all of this, my poetry, prose, and photography are proceeding apace, driven only by inspiration, and not by any schedule or agenda. They are simply what they are, and I am only the middle man.

I hope this blog brings some joy into your lives. Thank you for giving it that chance. Wadó, ꮹꮩ.

Bearer of Light

Bearer of light,
have mercy on us.

Kyrie, eleison.

Bringer of life,
have mercy on us.

Kyrie, eleison.

Guardian of all,
have mercy on us.

Kyrie, eleison.

Ruler of rulers,
gift of gifts,
treasure of treasures,
and wisdom of the wise,
have mercy on us.

Kyrie, eleison.
Kyrie, eleison.
Kyrie, eleison.