Not long ago I spent a year studying translation in Montreal, which turned out to be a transformative experience. I met my partner and some of my very best friends there, and it would take a longer post than this to describe the many ways in which that city stole my heart.
I lived in an apartment with four other folks from around the world-- a British northerner, a British southerner, a Ukrainian, and a Frenchman. English was our lingua franca, but even between us three native speakers there were a fair number of missed communications due to language issues. We were all students and artists, fumbling our way through a city unlike any other.
I wrote this shortly after leaving, in an attempt to capture the glorious messy environment of the apartment where we spent that winter. The picture below was taken in our living room, and if you look closely you can spot some of the items featured in the poem.
Living Room
One tv, spray-painted gold
two feet cubed, fifteen years old
a pack of crisps, a bag of chips
a vape or three
flavored hits
of nicotine and THC
one kit of hair peroxide, used
one charcoal drawing of a cube
the Queen’s ironic painted visage
Quadaffi over Greenwich Village
a tiny Buddha staring down
a miniature seaside town
A betta fish, his bowl, his wives
A pineapple, two butter knives
A minor insect infestation
possibly a lost crustacean
a bag of psychadelic flora
chemistry that’s not in order
one bike tire, but no bike
Not the place to bring a tyke
one laptop with a broken screen
That powder might be ketamine?
Three scarves, two hats, an ancient jacket
speakers which cause quite the racket
five accents proclaim in bitter tones
“it’s too much man!” before they groan
“This afternoon, let’s all clean up-
There isn’t even one clean cup!”
A sinful den, a winter solace
A home that’s warm if not quite flawless
Packed up now in crates and bags
kilograms on luggage tags
For one winter, that was all
February, Montreal.
–Donovan, 2015
Is there any place in the world that changed your life? Do you love Montreal like I do? Hate Montreal? Ever spray-painted a TV? Let me know in the comments!
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