Dear girl, your cheeks are soft and tender,
And your breasts, like little hills, are slender,
Fall in love with me and from this instance
We will never live apart in distance.
My piragua, we will board together,
And the wind will set our sail untethered.
Should you wish to ride an elephant, dear,
I will be your loyal karnak there.
Should you turn into the moon one evening,
I'll become a cloud so to be near you.
Should you be liana of the jungle
I will turn into a bird or a monkey.
On the mountain peak you climb, my dear,
Looking into the abyss with awe and fear
Even if they put my feet in irons,
I will climb that peak despite all tyrants.
Yet my skills are useless for tomorrow
I am destined for a bitter sorrow.
You don't love me; so I soon start perish
Like a bull deprived of juicy daisies.
With no single kiss that I could cherish
On that cheek of yours so fresh and rosy.
Девушка, твои так нежны щеки,
Грудь твоя — как холмик невысокий.
Полюби меня, и мы отныне
Никогда друг друга не покинем.
Ты взойдешь на легкую пирогу,
Я возьмусь отыскивать дорогу.
На слона ты сядешь, и повсюду
Я твоим карнаком верным буду.
Если сделаешься ты луною,
Стану тучкой, чтоб играть с тобою.
Если сделаешься ты лианой,
Стану птицею иль обезьяной.
Если будешь ты на горном пике
Перед пастью пропасти великой,
Пусть мне ноги закуют в железо,
Я на пик твой все-таки долезу.
Но напрасно все мое уменье,
Суждено мне горькое мученье,
Ты меня не любишь; и умру я,
Как бычек, травы лишенный свежей,
Без единственного поцелуя
В щеку, где румянец нежен, свежий.
«While braggarts walk the earth — I say it’s great, / We should be thanking heavens for our fate. / The skies are blue, the clouds are swirling! / We are no advocates of burgling. / To get a braggart use no knife: / But give his bragging a high-five — / And you possess his life. Wh...»
«I store an image in my soul, the portrait of a fair lady. / Her eyes are turned upon some other, better days. / No one’s dispensable in there, and years are careless of the fading, / And long ago, they cleared each other’s guilty ways. Today, the honorable choir’s still glorifying her ...»
«I built a castle of hope. I built and built it. / Kneaded some clay. Then carried cold boulders away. / And for help didn’t pray. / That’s how is will be: / It’s hope that will matter — strength might come on the way. And time went by. Seasons changed every...»
«A musician, near a forest tree, is trying out a waltz. / He is trying out a waltz, first passionate, then dimming. / And as far as I'm concerned, I look at you like I did once, / And like before, you look at him, and he just looks out dreaming. Music plays for an entire age. Our long picnic...»