Bruna Pedemonte (1963)

Originally from Valpolcevera, she retains a bit of Cremeno’s accent, memories of her very early childhood and the use of a Genoese dialect – she says – that is a bit “uncouth”. She grew up in Biscione, a neighborhood that, in spite of its bad reputation, actually has a rural character, for better or worse. She has been writing poetry since childhood. She perceives writing as a necessity, a way to better master her emotions. Her first poem was written in Genoese, but then for years she composed in Italian. Suddenly, the “father language” resurfaced and she started writing again in her “language of the heart”. For a long time, she did not consider sharing what she calls “a solitary exercise” with anyone until, thanks to a small booklet entitled Ciæi de lunäio in which she had collected her poems from 2010, she was persuaded by dear friends to defy her reluctance and open up to the outside world. Thus, she published several of her poems in several issues of Alba Letteraria – a magazine edited by the Lercari library – and was offered the opportunity to have a column entitled Spegetti bleu in the newspaper “Secolo XIX” as part of the “Parlo Ciæo” page. Her poetic language is essential, pictorial, evocative. For our part, we might add that the author has perhaps derived from her Buddhist faith an ability to fix sensations in an immutable instant, to turn them into matter for meditation.

Teggi

Sciortendo da-o luvego do bòsco
t’ei lì
i Teggi!

Mascâ de luxe.
Oudô de fen.
Sentî d’ægua boña.

E un pittin o sciou se scenta
e o cheu o s’incanta.

Settembre

Seccan e lerfe a-o meistrâ.

O çe o l’è un veddro turchin
de lumme antigo.

S’anneigra l’uga merella
ammeuia o figo.

Schitta o mæ tempo
comme un pescio in mâ.

Co-e so tesoie ruzze
settembre o çimma a luxe
e o vento co-a so voxe
mugugna cian cianin.

Seiaña

Tanto me piaxe Zena
mentre parpella a seia,
e into pòrto ’na veia
bansiga a-o vento de mâ.

Sproiña into sciöco cianzin
e muage me pan de sæa
l’arzillo ch’o ven da-a Rivea,
o pòrta magoin mai scentæ.

S’açendan i lampioin inti carroggi
maccaia, de læte a fa a luxe
e a l’è n’agoggia ch’a cuxe
’na teia de tutti i pensê.

O cheu comme unna coppa

O cheu comme unna coppa
ti l’impi comme t’ê,
chi solo d’ægua
chi sciöpo, chi d’amê.

Quello ghe mette a rappa
quello o vin.
Quarcun ghe mette o teuscego
e quarchedun l’arfê.

O cheu comme unna coppa
peu ëse fæto d’öo
de legno, rammo o pria,
sbalsou inte l’argento…

O mæ o l’è de cristallo
ammoou da-o vento.

Comme o cristallo o l’è delicou
comme o cristallo ti ghe veddi drento.

Da quande un giorno, un corpo l’à venou
m’affanno pe tegnî i tòcchi insemme,
vorriæ aveilo intrego e no se peu
perché son tròppe e creppe de mæ peñe.

Çerne d’empîlo ben fa a differensa,
se l’impo a l’òrlo de spremmua de luxe
da-e creppe sciòrte feua unna brillansa
ch’a inonda tutta a tæra in lontanansa.

Lampedusa, 3 ottobre 2013

Quell’öta
che pescavimo òmmi
e o mâ o l’ea neigro.

A raggia
a boggiva,
drento e feua.

Scuggia pietæ
che o mæ cheu o l’è
freido
duo
de pria.

Quande no se spëgemmo ciù
semmo soli
into
posso.

Mëzogiorno

E nuvie de pan
scoran o vento.

Fregugge de spegio
s’açendan in mâ.

A creusa de moin, condia de sâ
a conta co-i passi
o passo do tempo.

In radda gh’é i scheuggi che pan accoegæ.

O giorno de sô o reciamma l’estæ.

D’aggueito un öchin o stà à vedde s’a gh’é.

T’ei ti Boccadaze,
e muage che ascondan
coverte de lelloa mesccia a-o giäsemin
ne an visto giamin
da gente de mâ
chi anava à pescâ!

T’arröbo co-i euggi
ti intanto regheuggi
a toagia de fî
de vitte à vegnî.

A-e dònne

Of note is how the underlying feminist demands here do not translate into pedantic sociological dissertations, but rather into images that are fresh, natural, immediate, but not obvious; almost coming from a pre-industrial civilization and on balance optimistic.

E dònne de pelle möa
son belle comme o sô.
Fan vegnî in cheu
a tæra,
o pan,
a moæ.

E dònne de pelle ciæa,
son legie comme o tulle,
e ödoan
de succao de confittua.

E dònne risse,
son nuvie de mouxi arrigoelæ.

Quelle de cavelli driti,
sæa ch’a scuggia a-e die.

Semmo belle
comme o çe
comme o monte
comme l’amê
comme o gran
comme o fen
comme l’ægua do riâ
comme föe do messiavo.

Semmo comme o mâ ciù fondo.
Intra noiatre nasce o mondo.

Camoggi

Aia savoia

Anche a pelle a l’intende
che chiño i scæn
che van a-o mâ.

Un pê apreuo à l’atro
e in scî risseu
son assettâ.

Dòppo tanto zazzun
me çibbo de lontanansa.

E quande o sô
o pittua d’öo
e scaveñe de veddro
de che ancheu son fæte e onde,
me gio
e no ammio
donde oua o s’anià à asconde.

Da-o barcon

’Na brancâ de luxe çeneeña
a l’inciastra Zena

Sparisce o mâ inte ’n çê
ciappa d’abbæn.

Con raffeghe e boffi o Gregâ
o tormenta i erboi

Fito e nuvie strepellian
in gæli gianchi

l’äia da drua a vegnià ræa
e se veddià a Rivea

Fin de frevâ

O piccinetto
O l’è passou.

A man averte
o n’à piggiou
à mascoin de vento
e no contento
o n’aspetava derê a-i canti
con stagnoin
d’ægua.

Despëtaddo

ghe gusta
ëse refioso.

Spesse vòtte
o mostra
’na lengua de sô
pe cansonâne.