Chinese Journey 18 Poem by Olga Sedakova

Let us praise our earth,
let us praise the moon on the water,
that which is with no one and with all,
which is nowhere and everywhere -
the size of a swallow's eye,
of a crumb of dry bread,
of a ladder on a butterfly's wings,
of a ladder cast from the sky.
Not only trouble and pity
are the yoke to my heart,
but also the smiling
of miraculous water.
Let us praise the bathing of priceless dark branches
in living glass
and all the spirits, vigilant
above each grain in the soil.
And that there is a recompense,
that there is a barrier against harm,
that, as the garden has a gardener,
the earth has praise.

Translated by Jena Woodhouse