Poetry Expo 23
/ 12 February 2023
The symposium and the vulture / Le symposium et le vautour
Poetry Expo 23
The poem ‘The symposium and the vulture’ questions our fears and collective inaction while our scientific knowledge should urge us to change our behaviors in order to protect human life conditions. What is the cause of our inaction, really?
The symposium and the vulture
We would talk at length
We would sit in semi-circles behind curved desks
equipped with microphones
and spring water bottles
We would talk about melting glaciers
the listing of drinking water on the stock market
We would recite remembrance databases
of the names of species doomed to erasure
(recite in order not to forget, recite by superstition)
Sometimes a yawn would escape us
We would invite to distract us
photographers and scientists
They would tell us about their books that we had not read
They would present on glossy paper
vignettes full of mystery
the beautiful animals of the air, land and seas
They would explain
the obsolescence and the ephemeral
Over the pages living species would become
vocabulary survival
We would be surprised that while celebrating nature they forgot to marvel
at a species of raptor with ten weak fingers surprisingly able
to build machines and manufacture various substances, among which
wax suitable for ear use
and organic cotton sleeping masks
that silenced animal complaints and allowed
to ignore the big holes in forests
Two major advantages in our situation
(As the vulture makes large circles in the sky before swooping down
there is for the prey the possibility of an escape
not the escape from the eagle talons but from the much sharper claws
of your own stupidity
of your own fear
The vulture does not necessarily fly faster than you run
but you think your chances are nil that’s when you give the advantage
When you believe that you are the last generation that can live decently anyway
and that then you might as well stay in the plain and finish consuming your lovely
picnic.)
Le symposium et le vautour
Nous parlions longuement
Nous étions assis en demi-cercles derrière des bureaux incurvés
équipés de micros
de bouteilles d’eau de source
Nous discutions de la fonte des glaciers
de la cotation de l’eau potable en bourse
Nous récitions des répertoires souvenir
des nom d’espèces vouées à l'effacement
(répétions pour ne pas oublier, répétions en superstition)
Parfois nous échappait un
bâillement
Nous invitions pour nous distraire
des photographes des savants
Ils nous parlaient de leurs livres que nous n’avions pas lus
Ils présentaient papier glacé
des vignettes pleines de mystère
les beaux animaux de l’air, de la terre et des mers
Ils expliquaient
l’obsolescence et l’éphémère
Au fil des pages les espèces vivantes devenaient
des survivances de vocabulaire
Nous nous étonnions que célébrant la nature ils oublient de s’émerveiller
d’une espèce de rapace à dix doigts faibles étonnamment capable
de construire des machines et fabriquer diverses substances, parmi quoi
de la cire adaptée à un usage auriculaire
et des bandeaux de nuit en coton bio
qui faisaient taire les plaintes des animaux et permettaient
d’ignorer les grands trous dans les forêts
Deux avantages majeurs dans notre situation
(Au moment où le vautour fait de grands cercles dans le ciel avant de piquer au sol
il y a pour la proie la possibilité d’une fuite
Non pas la fuite des serres mais des griffes bien plus acérées
de ta propre bêtise
de ta propre peur
Le vautour ne vole pas nécessairement plus vite que tu ne cours
mais tu crois que tes chances sont nulles c'est là que tu cèdes l'avantage
Quand tu crois que de toute façon tu es de la dernière génération qui pourra vivre convenablement
et qu'alors autant rester dans la plaine finir de consommer ton joli
pique-nique.)
The project is part of the subthemes Opportunity and Sustainability.
Author
Geneviève Eva Genicot
Geneviève Eva Genicot is a Belgian poet, fiction writer, writing workshop leader, and editor. Exploring the intersection of fiction and poetry, she often writes about cities, modern life, and human connection.
In her poetic tale "Sushi Bar", set in the urban night, she delves into the encounter between Mr. Boss and a depressed man escaping the violence of capitalist flows (Ed. F de Phosphène). In "Quelque chose à méditer", she ironically addresses how easily we succumb to the temptation of accumulating everything, even breath (Papier Machine). She is also the author of several short stories published in "Marginales", including "Les mains d’Enzo," which questions the end of public services through the thwarted vocation of a young physiotherapist.
As a lover of cities and landscapes, she pays tribute to Brussels in the novella "Canicule" (Maelström), recounts her journey to "Blue-eyed Japan" in a series of poems (Voix d’encre), and writes about "Epic Madrid" in an ongoing collection of short poetic prose, some of which have been published in the anthology "La Realidad" (Café Literario Editores) and "The Madrid Review". Other poems have appeared in "Bacchanales", "La Revue des Archers", "Ressacs", and in artist’s books created with Marie Ginet, Chantal Legendre, and Géraldine Dubois.
Geneviève has given poetry readings at festivals in France and Belgium, both solo and alongside other poets. She has participated in poetic collectives such as Ecrits/studio (Lyon, France) and initiated a series of unique poetic evenings ("On se voit très vite") with Samantha Barendson, Fany Buy, Pauline Picot, and guests. She collaborated for several years with the street theatre company Arts Nomades (Lessines, Belgium). She enthusiastically participates in open mics in French, English, and Spanish.
Academic background: Geneviève studied Romance Literature and Political Science at the universities of Louvain, Keele, and Bologna. Her dissertation focused on literary representations of geopolitical identities in 20th-century European novels. She continued with doctoral research at Sciences Po Grenoble and taught in Grenoble and Krakow before dedicating herself to writing, leading writing workshops, and, more recently, fiction editing at Edern Editions.
Youtube Channel: "Geneviève Eva Genicot" https://www.youtube.com/@genevieve.eva.genicot
Website: www.genevievegenicot.blogspot.com
