For some reason today I woke up thinking about the Turkish poet, Orhan Veli Kanik. (Random, I know. )
I’m fascinated by Orhan Veli, and I’ve always found his spartan phrasing full of emotion.
He died young, at 36, after falling in a ditch after drinking. (Apparently, he was quite a drinker. I’m not judgin’). I read somewhere that his last poem was found wrapped around his toothbrush. That could be a fabrication, but, I like the thought.
Anyway, I thought I’d share my absolute favorite poem ever with you. Here you go:
This world is just to drive a man crazy,
This midnight, the hushed buzz from the moonlit hills, this odor,
And trees all covered with sudden blossoms.–Orhan Veli (Translated by Murat Nemet-Nejat, 1989)
You can read more of his poetry here, and here.
What do you think? Like it? Hate it? Rather read a haiku?
Do you have a favorite poem? Put it in the comments – I’d love to read it!
12 Comments
Hi Laird, I love this poem. Because he is right, the world is here to drive us silly souls to the brink, until we remember who we really are: a bunch of star dust caught in a human body.Very grrooovy website by the by. But then I’d expect nothing but the best from you darling.
Why thank you, Ms. Funk Heller!
And your assessment of the poem was a poem itself! Well said!
Exactly. I’m willing to walk around drunk if it means I can write sh*t like that. I’ll watch out for holes in the ground.
Right? I am so with you on that.
Had never heard of this poet so thanks for the introduction. Love the poem AND I love that he had a poem wrapped around his toothbrush, the most obvious of places to store one. So convenient and ingenious.
I thought the same thing! I like to picture him in flannel pj’s, brushing his teeth, and then getting an a-ha moment and scribbling a poem on a scrap of paper…lol
Thanks for introducing us to this poet. I know I need to read more poetry, but sometimes I’m at a loss for which way to look with modern poetry. However, it can really be great for teaching a prose writer how to write tight.
I don’t even remember where I first heard about him…it was a long time ago…OH! I remember now, a great site that may or may not still be around where one can order the world’s best turkish coffee! Natashascafe.com…
And I totally agree – I love how much he says with so few words.
I enjoyed the poem you posted very much but after looking through some of his other works, I really liked “To Keep Busy” – really sad that he died so young but wow, what a body of work he left behind.
I know – imagine if he had lived to be 70… WOW. I am going to go re-read To Keep Busy” now…
One of my other very favorites is “Life is Like This” – I have long loved the name Mavish because of it.
I hadn’t heard of Kanik before either, but then again I don’t know much about poetry. I LOVE the poem, his brevity of style that is so rich in imagery. So sad that his life was so short. Thank you for the introduction to a remarkable poet.
I’m not the biggest poetry buff, either – but for some reason his poetry has always struck a chord with me. Sad that he died young, but what an amazing gift with words he had!