Sherry Chandler

when a human dies
doors bang
cars move
and clouds stretch across the sky
a cat washes its face
people rush on by
a computer hums next-door…
— fs, translated by Miriam McIlfatrick

fs appears to be the latest pseudonym of the Estonian poet Indrek Mesikepp. Is that his real name? Is that relevant? This poet has also been known as François Snake and/or François Serpent. fs was born in 1971 and was educated as an art historian at the University of Tartu. He is a member of the Estonian Writers Union. His collection book with a white cover apparently had a black cover and his collection 2004, a reference to 1984 but also the year of the book’s publication, won the poetry prize from the Estonian Cultural Endowment. According to the Baltic Ring:

He is the dark star of the younger generation of Estonian contemporary poetry, a lone urban wolf, a thrifty describer of his home city, it´s boredom and absurd melancholy. Those are gloomy nowadays visions, that fs has to offer. There´s no laughter, only quiet smirks. Nevertheless, there is also a light at the end of the sewer system, where the machinery of the society stops. Quite possible, that if George Orwell would have been a poet and believed in happy endings, he would have written in a similar way.

You can find more information about fs and translations of his poetry at the Estonian Literature Information Center and at The Other Voices International Project.

fs – who he is
and where he comes from

I am an Estonian poet
I come from Lasnamäe
what is Lasnamäe?
an eastern district
of our capital city
there are grey buildings
five and nine storeys
some even higher
supermarkets too
and lots of dog shit…

Take a look.

Thanks to Erin.