Le Dos indocile des mots
Nicole Brossard · Translated by Karen McPherson
Q
quelque fois en quête d’un quotidien quiet
je rêve en quechua du Quetzal (n.m., mot nahuatl, oiseau des forêts du Mexique et d’Amérique centrale)
à son plumage vert quasiment
quand le jour nous quitte, j’avale
des quetsches, tout le violet des questions
des quintets de qu’en-dira-t-on québécois
je reste sur le qui-vive
[S→Q]1
depending on the questing and the quiet
I’m queen of the quarter moon
quoting Sappho, sharing quarters
with my queer sisters
desires quickening with tequila and quince
the quaking world no quarrel no quicksand
all quite clear in memory:
the quilt of me, the quill of me
quivering
The “Q” entry in English is a translation of the “S” entry in French, and the “S” entry in English is a translation of the “Q” entry in French. See discussion of this switch in the translator’s introduction and notes.