The city sleeps; but the light laze
On
The streets are still save for
The occasional passing
Vehicle.
The waters dance
Fount silent
In the night
Disappears in the dawn
When the nocturnal shrieks
Of the grasshoppers cease
And crickets amorous.
The nightingales
Ah! they sung long ago
At the rim of dusk and of
Night:
But now command still
Silence,
The waters dance
Fount silent
In the night
Disappears in the dawn
When the nocturnal shrieks
Of the grasshoppers cease
And crickets amorous.
Zeus opened a window
In his palace:
Saw below
The night
The sleeping Earth
The lazy lights
And yawned and
Closed the window.
The waters dance
Fount silent
In the night
Disappears in the dawn
When the nocturnal shrieks
Of the grasshoppers cease
And crickets amorous.
Casual lines
Not melodramatic
Nor overtly romantic
Not particularly flowing
Yet
Set piece after set piece
Of wine and beauty
Yes!
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
I like this poem very much. It traces the gradual descent of silence which eventually takes over the whole city and I assume the lives of the citizens. The refrain shows this and highlights some of the last sounds to be muted. I like the humor of Zeus looking out over the sleeping world and realizing there's no one to meet, goes to bed himself. But it's the closing stanza that intrigues me, where you assess your poetic language objectively but also affirm your joie de vivre. To which I add my enthusiastic YES! !