Eye of Goya

Eye of Goya

The times foretold a storm

Strong at certain points

On the road.

You came from the Basque Country,

Reflecting all the south

Of last week.

Then, as you chose two sea bass,

You spoke of childhood, of vacations.

Arriving home, where you could finally settle,

You became aware of the importance of aging

Those hours,

Until you truly had to create a new job

So you can help this poem

You think of the beer from Bilbao,

Orson Welles comes to mind, and the carrier pigeons

Between Euskadi — Spain, France, and vice versa.

But above all, that self-portrait by Goya —
It didn’t move an inch from you.

It never stopped following you to the end of the room.

No, it never took its eye off you.

It carried the message: “I’ve spotted you.

From now on, there is escape.”

Translated from my 2020 book, Nem Paz, Nem Guerra (Urutau). For more of my work in Portuguese, please visit my website: Pedro Góis Nogueira.