Not till the silver nor the golden wed
I will proceed to live with you, my friend.
But we have had the iron one before —
t’d gone through flames of the ferocious war.
This love I hold all golden weds above:
Like in the iron, I am still in love.
Ни до серебряной и ни до золотой,
всем ясно, я не доживу с тобой.
Зато у нас железная была —
по кромке смерти на войне прошла.
Всем золотым ее не уступлю:
всё так же, как в железную, люблю.
«For Nikolai Nedobrovo There’s a secret border in human closeness, / That love’s being, love’s passion, cannot pass — / Though lips are sealed together in dreadful silence, / Though hearts break in two with love’s distress. And friendship too is powerless, and years / Of sublime f...»
«To lose the freshness of speech, the simplicity of feeling, / Isn’t that, for us, like a painter losing the power of sight, / Or an actor, their voice and movement, / Or a lovely woman, her beauty? But don’t try to keep to yourself / This gift the heavens have granted: / We’re conde...»
«For Vasily Komarovsky Such strange words / That quiet April day brought me. / You knew it was still alive in me, / That dreadful week of passion. I heard no pealing of bells, / Floating in clear azure, / For seven days copper laughter chimed, / Silvery sorrow streamed. And I, veiling ...»
«How can you bear to view the Neva, / How can you bear to cross its bridges?.. / No surprise I’m marked for sadness, / Since that vision of you appeared. / Sharp, the black angels’ wings, / Soon, the judgement day; / And raspberry-coloured bonfires blossom / Like roses, in the snow.»