Frits Thaulow, "Red Church Wall in Venice" (1894)

From the rotting fish,

from the lazy cats,

beneath the squashed summer fruits,

your glory grows:

Maria della Salute, Ca d'Oro,

Colleoni, Pallazo Ducale...

I count my coins on the steps,

place my ham on the dry bread

and remember the Giorgione

with its fretful tattered clouds

bearing the title:

        "la tempesta."

Thomas Bernhard (1931-1989). On Earth and in Hell. Translated by Peter Waugh. New York City: Three Rooms Press, 2015.