Uvek me je zanimalo šta je slično, a šta različito i šta nas zapravo duhovno povezuje. Miloš Crnjanski, na primer. On je 1928. sastavio najstariju antologiju japanske poezije kod vas – Pesme starog Japana, i nešto kasnije u svojoj poemi Stražilovo koristio je japanski motiv trešnjinog cveta kao simbol prolaznosti I was always interested in what is similar and what is different, and what actually binds us spiritually. Take Miloš Crnjanski, for example. In 1928 he compiled the oldest anthology of Japanese poetry in your country, “Poems of ancient Japan” and sometime later, in his poem “Stražilovo”, he used the Japanese motif of cherry blossom as a symbol of transience
S vaki razgovor sa Kajoko ili sa Kajom, kako je zovu srpski prijatelji, jeste kao poema. Šeta- te se dugom lirskom pesmom, stižete do da- leke ostrvske zemlje Japana, ali se vraćate u stvarne beogradske predele. Njen besprekorno čist srpski jezik ima ritam koji odaje da nije njen mater- nji. Japansku knjževnost i jezik predavala je beograd- skim studentima, a naše najvoljenije pisce i pesnike, poput Danila Kiša, Miloša Crnjanskog, Desanke Mak- simović, Disa i Laze Kostića, prevodila je i poklanja- la japanskoj kulturi. Kao stipendista tadašnje SFRJ, 1979. godine doš- la je da proučava jugoslovenske književnosti, prvo u Sarajevo, pa u Ljubljanu. Od 1981. je u Beogradu. Svog supruga, Japanca srpskog porekla, upoznala je u Ja- panu, a zavolela u Beogradu. Ovde su rođena i nji- hova tri sina, koji osim japanskih imena imaju i srp- ska. Branko, Mihailo i Nebojša su devedesetih godina novobeogradskoj deci približavali daleki, lepi Japan. – Suđeno mi je bilo da budem ovde. Beograd je postao moje gnezdo. Prevodila sam knjige Danila Ki- ša i proučavala i poredila japansku i srpsku avangar- dnu poeziju. Uvek me je zanimalo šta je slično, a šta različito i šta nas zapravo duhovno povezuje. Miloš Crnjanski, na primer. On je 1928. sastavio najstariju antologiju japanske poezije kod vas – Pesme starog Japana , i nešto kasnije u svojoj poemi Stražilovo ko- ristio je japanski motiv trešnjinog cveta kao simbol prolaznosti. To nežno, blago cveće koje kratko živi go- vori da je i naš život takav, kratak, prolazan, ali opet lep – priča Kajako i otkriva da daleki Japan i našu ze- mlju spaja most poezije. Ona je svoje pesme počela da piše 1991. kako bi izrazila najdublja osećanja i pronašla sklonište od teš- kih godina u zemlji daleko od njene. – Poezija nas vraća na tu iskonsku, polaznu tač- ku našeg postojanja, a to je da smo mi emotivna bi- ća, da čeznemo za pravom ljubavlju, za lepotom, za zajedničkim trenutkom. Poezija otvara teren da mo- žeš da deliš sa nekim ne samo hleb ili jabuku nego i osećanja i vreme. Svaka rascvetala ruža je važna ko- liko i vaš uspeh, vaš lični život. Poezija treba da uli- Tekst / Words: Željka Mrđa Fotografije / Photography: Goran Srdanov
E very conversation with Kajoko, or Kaja, as she’s known by her Serbian friends, is like a poem. You walk through a long lyrical poem, arriving in the distant island nation of Japan, but you return to existing Belgrade climbs. Her impeccably pure Serbian has a rhythm that reveals it’s not her mother tongue. She has taught Japanese literature and language to Belgrade students, as well as translating and gifting to Japanese culture our most beloved writers and po- ets, such as Danilo Kiš, Miloš Crnjanski, Desanka Maksimović, Vladislav ‘Dis’ Petković and Laza Kostić. As a scholarship recipient of the then Socialist Yugosla- via in 1979, she came to study Yugoslav literature, initially in Sarajevo and later in Ljubljana. She has been resident in Bel- grade since 1981. She met her husband, a Japanese man with Serbian roots, in Japan and fell in love with him in Belgrade. Their three sons were born here, and in addition to their Japa- nese names they also have Serbian names. Back in the 1990s, Branko, Mihailo and Nebojša brought the distant and beau- tiful land of Japan closer to the children of New Belgrade. “I was fated to be here. Belgrade has become my nest. I translated the books of Danilo Kiš and studied and compared Japanese and Serbian avant-garde poetry. I was always inter- ested in what is similar and what is different, and what actually binds us spiritually. Take Miloš Crnjanski, for example. In 1928 he compiled the oldest anthology of Japanese poetry in your country, “Poems of ancient Japan” and sometime later, in his poem “Stražilovo”, he used the Japanese motif of cherry blos- som as a symbol of transience. This gentle, tender, short-lived flower testifies to our life also being like that – short and tran- sient, but still beautiful,” says Kayako, revealing that distant Ja- pan and our country are connected by the bridge of poetry. She began writing her poems in 1991, in an attempt to express her deepest feelings and find refuge from the tough- est years in a land far away from her own. “Poetry transports us back to that original starting point of our existence, and that is that we’re emotional beings, that we strive for true love, for beauty, for a shared moment. Poet- ry opens the terrain so that you can share not only bread or apples with someone, but rather also feelings and time. Every blooming rose is as important as your success, your person- al life. Poetry should instil a sense of hope, precisely when it seems there’s no way out. That’s what Desanka said to me. She’s always an internal interlocutor for me. Whenever I have some dilemma, I ask myself what Desanka Maksimović would say,” says Kayoko, reminding of the power of poetry.
KUVAM PASULJ, GULAŠE I SARME Što se srpskih ukusa i mirisa tiče, Kojoko, kako kaže, obožava da kuva pasulj, gulaš, punjene paprike, sarmu, razne pite, ajvar. - U Srbiji hrana okuplja ljude. Razgovor uz vino je prava radost. Ovde je meso odlič- no, u Japanu je dobra riba. Volim da pravim suši za prijatelje. Nazvala sam to koba- jagi suši. Zvuči kao japansko, zar ne? Sada istražujem slavu svog supruga. Sveti Pe- tar ili Đurđevdan? Biće lepo kada je budemo otkrili. I LOVE TO COOK BEANS, GOULASH, STUFFED CABBAGE When it comes to Serbian flavours and aromas, Koyoko says that she loves to cook beans, goulash, stuffed peppers, stuffed cabbage leaves, various pies and ajvar pepper chutney. “In Serbia food brings people together. Conversing over wine is a real joy. The meat here is excellent, while in Japan the fish is good. And I like to make sushi for my friends. I’ve called it kobajagi sushi, which sounds Japanese, doesn’t it? I’m now researching the saint’s day ‘slava’ of my husband. Saint Peter or George’s Day? It’ll be nice when we discover which.”
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