His name was Mathias, her name was Marie.
What was going through their minds that evening, when the first shots were fired, when they first understood that the noises weren’t part of the show, when the curtains were first stained?
Did they fall straight away? Did they see the men arrive?
Did he take you in his arms when you screamed? Did she grab your hand, did you grip hers?
Did she know, amid the joyous cries, the happy dance, the mad laughs and the kisses, when she received the tickets? Did he know, the rhythm, the highs, the happiness and the blown out candles, when the song had only just begun?
Did she cry, during those first notes, those first shots, for the last shout, the last piece of life? Did he say, quick, I love you, if only you knew, quick, let’s go, let’s run, quick, fly, take me, kiss me, hold me tight, don’t let me go?
Did she laugh, this Friday, tapping her fingers excitedly on the table, did she mark the date in her diary, did she trip over loose cables in her excitement, did she put her make up on? Did he feel that the wind was a little cooler this Friday, did he zip up his jacket, push down his baseball cap, walk a little faster, quick, we’re going to be late, it’s going to start, it’s going to be so good, just wait and see?
Did she hear him fall, hear him roll, did she hold him in her arms, did she kiss his cold face? Did he see her run, see her leave, feel her frailty, smell her blood, slide down in her arms?
Did they crumble together, quick, come, it’s time, we won’t feel anything, if only you knew, did he hold her, did she caress him, quick, it’s going to be so good, you’ll see, quick, I love you, kiss me, squeeze me and don’t let me go don’t let me go?
Did they see – this small guy with glasses, short hair, red lips, this girl in leather, earrings, long fringe, the changeable smile, the nose ever so slightly too big, the tiny scars, the freckles, this cheerful little blonde girl – the hands that clap, the tongues that click, the sweat on foreheads, the laughter that raises the roof?
Did they find out, did they see, did they all kiss each other, did they all fall, did they all leave, quick quick, the rhythm, the men, the bullets, did they find out, did they see, the blackness, the fear, the cries, quick, quick, leave with me, don’t leave me, quick, quick, it’s going to be so good, you’ll see?
And you, Paris, do you know when you cry when you moan when you roll on the ground when your face cracks when you tremble when your lips quiver when you shout when you stagger when your bridges sway when your traffic lights stop when your cafés burst when the bullets hit when your streets whistle when your pavements creak when your kids fall down when the candles are lit when you get back up when your trees stand tall when your people hoist themselves up when your colours fly when your proud population yells out when your sails go long when you live Paris do you know when when do you know that you are beautiful when Paris do you know that you are beautiful when you love when you resist when you sing when you exist?
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I wish to express my heartfelt thanks to Chloe Dunn for her beautiful translation of my original text. She did an amazing job in finding the appropriate words in English and I am forever grateful to her.
7 comments
Quelle belle idée de faire traduire ce texte magnifique.
Bonne soirée !
Quel beau couple, quelle tristesse. Mes pensées les belles pour eux et leurs famille, que la lumière les accompagne et les aide.
Il est très beau ton message; Bisous
Oui le texte est pas mal, mais quel rapport avec l’Abondance Frugale ?
Je t’invite à lire ce commentaire.
Pour ma part, le lien avec l’abondance frugale paraît évident. Vous n’êtes pas sans savoir que ces organisations terroristes sont financées par l’Arabie Saoudite, le Qatar, ces pays détenteurs de ressources pétrolières tant convoitées par le reste du monde, et par conséquent par des gouvernements qui imposent le monopole d’un mode de vie basé sur tout ce que l’on produit à partir des hydrocarbures. Déstabiliser l’unité des pays d’Europe ou celle des États Unis, c’est vouloir influencer les rapports de force sur le marché du pétrole, contrôler les prix et la destination des fortunes que cela génère. Du moins c’est ainsi que j’analyse les choses.
Par contre, concernant ce couple victime des attentats, j’ai trouvé dommage que l’on s’en serve autant pour solliciter notre empathie, parce-qu’on se retrouve témoin direct de leur amour, parce-qu’ils sont jeunes, parce-qu’ils sont beaux, et parce-que la photo est magnifique. Je me suis sentie manipulée par l’exploitation de cette beauté par les media mainstream. Leur disparition est affreuse, il n’y a pas de mots, mais je n’ai pas apprécié que l’on joue autant avec ma sensibilité, à leur sujet plutôt qu’à d’autres.
Bonjour , je ne souhaite pas de débat du tout et je parle avec une demarche de pacifisme. Je suis musulmane, je suis ecolo , je suis (très) pratiquante et je suis absolument contre les actions terroristes. Corollule , je me permet de vous dire sans vous offenser que ce que vous dites est completement faux , j’aurai aimé que plus de personnes prennent la peine de voir du coté des musulmans car l’Arabie ne finance absolument pas le terrorisme , au contraire . Ce pays est contre les organisations terroristes et les Grands Imams de ce royaume ont tous parlé apres les evenements pour exprimer leur colere Ces gens representent une toute petite partie de notre religion , s’il vous plait , pas d’amalgames. Ceci dit , je suis triste pour ces gens , personne ne doit decider de la mort d’une autre .