Boris Pasternak
Sunrise

You were my life sometime ago.
Then came the war, the devastation.
You vanished, leaving me alone,
Without a trace or explanation.

When many years had passed me by,
Your voice awakened me by chance.
I sat and read Your Word all night
And came to life out of a trance.

Since then, I feel more drawn to people,
To blend into the morning crowd.
I’ll cause commotion and upheaval
And send the sinners bowing down.

Outside I rush for this alone.
Like for the first time, standing speechless,
I see these streets and snowy roads,
These desolate, abandoned bridges.

I’m welcomed everywhere I visit.
There’s light and comfort, and time flies.
And in a matter of just minutes,
The landscape can’t be recognized.

The blizzard’s weaving by the gate
From falling snow that won’t diminish.
In haste, not wanting to be late,
The people leave their meals unfinished.

For all of them, I feel compassion,
As if their troubles are my own.
I melt, myself, like snowflakes ashen,
And knit my brows like the dawn.

I walk among these nameless men.
Before my eyes, the world is spinning!
I lose myself in all of them,
And only in this is my winning. 

Translated by Andrey Kneller