And Neither Stanzas, Nor The Stars Poem by Vic Postnikov

And neither stanzas, nor the stars
Will save me from Nemesis
For, every time I toiled

O'er stubborn lines,
I sought o'er forehead
Stars - not eyes

For, having taken you as king,
My lovely Eros, every time
I did it how I please

For, nightly, in a solemn fog,
I sought from soft and rosy lips
The rhymes - not kiss

For, to the cruelest judge
I looked like snow,
For, in my breast I held below -
Apotheosis!

For, having faced the rising East,
I sought on forehead
Dawns - not roses!


- Marina Tsvetaeva,20 May 1920
Trans. Vic Postnikov, 6 Oct 2013