HEROIC AXONOMETRY

A 1981 astropoem by
Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

English translation from the Romanian by
Victor Chifelea and Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Artwork (A False Coulour View of the Helix Nebula) by
Diana Alexandra Ardelean (13 years old)

Design by
Gabriel Ivanescu


“All ellipses are chances!”
says the Rector
of the Supergalactic University.
“They can represent:
traces of errors,
needs for inertias,
interpretations of efforts,
trajectories of planets,
orbits of comets…
So you have to design ellipses,
very many ellipses!
Only thus
you could impress me!”

So…
I began to design
a lot of ellipses:
one, two, a thousand…
until all around me
has become an ellipse,
on which a comet is running
with meteors aggressing my head.

“Come on, Professor,
I want to get out of
this damned sheet of paper!
Do something:
call the Astral Police,
or the Space Ambulance,
or the Void Firemen,
only take me out of here!”

But the Professor
does not hear me,
he asks himself
about my disappearing,
and for this
I could be expelled
from the tridimensional universe.

“Toate elipsele sunt sanse!”-
spune Rectorul
Universitatii Supragalactice.
“Ele pot reprezenta:
urme de erori,
nevoi de inertii,
interpretari de eforturi,
traiectorii de planete,
orbite de comete…
Desenati elipse,
cat mai multe elipse!
Numai astfel
ma puteti impresiona!”

Am inceput,
prin urmare,
sa desenez foarte multe elipse:
una, doua, o mie…
pana ce totul in jurul meu
a devenit o elipsa
pe care alearga o cometa
cu meteori ce-mi cad in cap.

“Hei, Profesore,
vreau sa ies
din plansa asta blestemata!
Fa ceva,
cheama Politia Astrala,
ori Salvarea Spatiala,
ori Pompierii Vidului,
numai scoate-ma de aici!”

Dar Profesorul
nu ma mai aude,
se intreaba
unde am disparut
si in virtutea acestui fapt
s-ar putea sa ma exmatriculeze
din universul tridimensional.
 

© 2007 SARM
(Romanian Society for Meteors and Astronomy)