In Weihnachtszeiten reis’ ich gernUnd bin dem Kinderjubel fernUnd geh’ in Wald und Schnee allein.Und manchmal, doch nicht jedes Jahr,Trifft meine gute Stunde ein,Daß ich von allem, was da war,Auf einen Augenblick gesundeUnd irgendwo im Wald für eine StundeDer Kindheit Duft erfühle tief im SinnUnd wieder Knabe bin…
Across the fields the lost childOf my mother wanders.Across the street, leaves blow,Across the trees, birds cry —Across the mountains, far away,My home must be.
In trembling circles.Extravagantly carousing awayFor a whole hour rapidly vanishing,They rave, delirious, a shrill whir,Shivering with joy against death.While kingdoms, sunk into ruin,Whose thrones, heavy with gold, instantly scatteredInto night and legend, without leaving a trace,Have never known so fierce a dancing.Translated by James WrightSubmitted by Holt
Suddenly, silently, you still might riseAnd I would have to gaze on all your griefWith my own eyes,While you demand your happiness, that’s dead.I know, you walk beyond me, every night,With a coy footfall, in a wretched dressAnd walk for money, looking miserable!Your shoes gather God knows what ugly mess,The wind plays in your hair…
our life is similarto the existence of fairiesthat spin in soft cadencearound nothingnessto which we sacrificethe here and nowDreams of beauty, youthful joylike a breath in pure harmonywith the depth of your young surfacewhere sparkles the longing for the nightfor blood and barbarityIn the emptiness, spinning, without aims or needsdance free our livesalways ready for…
Not a sun to laugh with me,Everything bare,Everything cold and merciless,And even the beloved, clearStars look desolately down,Since I learned in my heart thatLove can die.Translated by James WrightSubmitted by Holt
So every virtue, so our grasp of truth,Blooms in its day and may not last forever.Since life may summon us at every ageBe ready, heart, for parting, new endeavor,Be ready bravely and without remorseTo find new light that old ties cannot give.In all beginnings dwells a magic forceFor guarding us and helping us to live.Serenely…
The soft blue spread of heaven, the bees’ song,Is this everything only a god’sGroaning dream,The cry of unconscious powers for deliverance?The distant line of the mountain,That beautifully and courageously rests in the blue,Is this too only a convulsion,Only the wild strain of fermenting nature,Only grief, only agony, only meaningless fumbling,Never resting, never a blessed movement?No!…
The stone fountain whispers its magic song,To me alone, to me the lonely oneThe colorful shadows of the wandering cloudsMove like dreams over the open countryside.Neither house nor farmland,Neither forest nor hunting privilege is given to me,What is mine belongs to no one,The plunging brook behind the veil of the woods,The frightening sea,The bird whir…
The wind on my hat…And you? And you, my friend?You are standing- maybe- and seeing the sickle moonMove in a small arc over the forestsAnd bivouac fire, red in the black valley.You are lying- maybe- in a straw field and sleepingAnd dew falls cold on your forehead and battle jacket.It’s possible tonight you’re on horseback,The…
