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# Two Poems by Ana Martins Marques
- URL: https://hyperallergic.com/two-poems-by-ana-martins-marques/
- Published: 2017-05-31T11:00:48.000Z
- Updated: 2025-11-24T16:41:09.000Z
- Description: Our poetry editor, Wendy Xu, has selected two poems by Ana Martins Marques for her monthly series that brings original poetry to the screens of Hyperallergic readers.
- Author: Wendy Xu
- Tags: Poetry, Hyperallergic Poetry, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 07:23 (2016, 2017, part 2)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/05/whale.jpg)

Illustration by Elisa Wouk Almino for This House by Ana Martins Marques (Scrambler Books)

## The Sea

She said  
the sea  
said  
sometimes improbable things come  
not merely plastic bags cardboard wood  
empty bottles condoms beer cans  
also umbrellas shoes fans  
and a sofa  
she said  
it’s possible to look  
for a long time  
it is here I come  
to clear my eyes  
she said  
those who were born far from  
the sea  
those who never saw  
the sea  
what will they make  
of the limitless?  
what will they make  
of leaving?  
will they think of taking a long road  
and not looking back?  
think of airport  
highways  
border controls?  
when they say  
I want to kill myself  
will they think of blades  
guns  
poison?  
for I only think  
of the sea

## One day

We didn’t sleep;  
we believed the night  
could be replaced by coffee  
and it was

our round heads  
under a round moon

we were saved by the small restaurant open until so  
\[late\]  
keeping in its heart bright red  
soup

you carried in your pockets  
coins from three countries

dawn came like the cover  
of a notebook

we talked as though writing subtitles  
for photographs

we wanted so much  
so little

we took the bus  
at the last minute

traveled  
side by side  
like a bilingual  
edition

#### TRANSLATED BY Elisa wouk almino

\* \* \*

Ana Martins Marques was born in Belo Horizonte in 1977\. She has a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the Federal University of Minas Gerais. She is the author of three poetry collections, *A vida submarina* (2009), [*Da arte das armadilhas*](http://www.amazon.com/dp/8535919643/?tag=hyperallergic-20&ref=hyperallergic.com) (2011), and [*O livro das semelhanças* ](http://www.amazon.com/dp/8535926194/?tag=hyperallergic-20&ref=hyperallergic.com)(2015). *Da arte das armadilhas* won the Brazilian National Library Foundation Prize and was shortlisted for the Portugal Telecom Award.

[Elisa Wouk Almino](http://www.elisawoukalmino.com/?ref=hyperallergic.com) is a translator from Portuguese and the associate editor of Hyperallergic. Her forthcoming translated collection of poetry by Ana Martins Marques, *This House*, will be published in June by [Scrambler Books](http://thescrambler.com/books.html?ref=hyperallergic.com). Her writing and translations have appeared in Guernica Magazine, Stonecutter Journal, n+1, Ugly Duckling Presse’s 6×6 Journal, Asymptote Journal, harlequin creature, and Words Without Borders.

*Readers are encouraged to submit 3–5 poems as a PDF to Wendy Xu for consideration at* [*poetry@hyperallergic.com*](mailto:poetry@hyperallergic.com)*.*