Confusion
III
You approached me, smiling mildly,
As by civility’s demand,
Then, half tenderly and half idly,
With a kiss you brushed my hand —
And the faces, mysterious, ancient,
Cast their gazes on me forthright…
All ten years of my trepidations,
Each and every sleepless night
I then placed in a quiet word
And I voiced it — in vain, unsure.
You walked off and with order restored,
My soul was empty and pure
Смятение
3
Как велит простая учтивость,
Подошёл ко мне, улыбнулся,
Полуласково, полулениво
Поцелуем руки коснулся —
И загадочных древних ликов
На меня поглядели очи…
Десять лет замираний и криков,
Все мои бессонные ночи
Я вложила в тихое слово
И сказала его — напрасно.
Отошел ты, и стало снова
На душе и пусто и ясно.
«I built myself a monument, eternal and miraculous, / It's higher than the Pyramids, than metal it is harder; / Swift winds and thunder cannot knock it down / The flight of time cannot demolish it. Thus I won't really die! The part of me that's largest / Will baffle death, and will escape de...»
«How blessed's the good-natured poet, / With little bile and much emotion: / All lovers of the gentle arts / Send him sincerest greetings; The admiration of the crowd / Sounds in his ear like rippling waves; / He is a stranger to self-doubt- / That torture of creative souls; Lover of co...»
«Here's a vestibule. On holidays / Overcome by slavish fear, / The whole population, in a state of awe, / Rushes to the sacred doors. / Having left their names and ranks. / All these visitors return then to their homes / They are all so deeply satisfied / You might think this was their...»
«You're unhappy, sick at heart: / Oh, I know it-here such sickness isn't rare. / Nature can but mirror / The surrounding poverty. All is ever drear and dismal, / Pastures, fields, and meadows, / Wet and drowsy jackdaws / Resting on the peaked haystacks; Here's a drunken peasant driving ...»