The Yale Anthology of Twentieth-Century French Poetry

Liliane Giraudon 1946–

france

A

poet and novelist, Giraudon is also a contributor to and cofounder

and editor of many reviews. She was on the editorial board of the

journals Action poétique (1977–1980) and Impressions du sud (1985–

1993). She cofounded the journal Banana Split (1980–1990) with Jean-Jacques

Viton. In 1982, with Viton and several others, she began Quatuor manicle, and in

1992 her journal If appeared. Giraudon organized a festival series entitled ‘‘Ren-

contres internationales de poésie contemporaine,’’ which was held in Cogolin,

France, in 1984, 1985, and 1986. She currently lives in Marseilles. Principal works:

Je marche ou je m’endors, 1982; La Réserve, 1984; Divagation des chiens, 1988;

Pallaksch, Pallaksch, 1990; Les Animaux font toujours l’amour de la même manière,

1995; Anne n’est pas Suzanne, 1998; Parking des filles, 1998.

When There’s Nothing Left to Wait For

When there’s nothing left to wait for
Tracking a state of being
That thing or another
It’s time but no longer
The moment

The heart rinsed out
Wanting to laugh
The meaning of a word

When the answer is in the title
A single reversal
Or a stroke of fate

If by chance you were simply to miss a step
For example
I mastered my insomnia from three to six a.m.
Worked up by a wine called ‘‘Sang des pierres’’
A Vaqueyras slowly drunk near the cry of swifts