Gloss [Glossă] - Mihai Eminescu

Time goes by, time comes along,
All is old and all is new
What is good and what is wrong
Ask yourself and ponder, too;
Do not hope and do not fear
What is wave, like waves will roll
If it tries to pull you near
Remain cool, be in control.

We see things of every kind
And we hear a lot of stuff
Who can store them all in mind,
Who can listen well enough?...
But you'd better sit aside,
Brace yourself, be ever strong
When with noises and vain pride
Time goes by, time comes along.

And don't let its tongue so strange,
To incline the reason's scales
To the moment that will change,
To the phony happy trails,
Which are rooted in its death
And will disappear like dew;
But for those who know at length
All is old and all is new.

Like spectators at a show
Be forever in your life:
If one plays four roles, you'll know,
And if watches you with strife
Or against you takes a stand
Stay within, where you belong,
From his art you'll understand
What is good and what is wrong.

And the future and the past
Are two sides of the same card
See the outset very fast
Those who learn them really hard;
All that was or that will be
Nowadays, we have in view
If it's vain for you and me,
Ask yourself and ponder, too.

Because these, as it appears,
All obey – the strong, the weak,
And for many thousand years
We've been happy, we've been bleak.
Other masks, the same old play,
Other mouths, the same career,
When you're cheated every day
Do not hope and do not fear.

Do not hope when knaves you'll see
In the triumph making bridge,
Because all the fools will be
Above you, on top the ridge;
Do not fear, for they will try
To pursue another goal
Do not join them, remain shy,
What is wave, like waves will roll.

With a mermaid song they know
To bring people in their arms;
To replace those in the show,
They will lure them with their charms;
But their call, do not abide,
And whatever you may hear
From your path don't step aside
If they try to pull you near.

If they touch you, shake their vice,
If they curse, don't try to speak;
What's the use to give advice
When you know they're fool and weak;
Let them speak, to have no fear,
In the world to play their role;
To reject what they hold dear,
Remain cool, be in control.

Remain cool, be in control,
If they try to pull you near;
What is wave, like waves will roll,
Do not hope and do not fear;
Ask yourself and ponder, too
What is good and what is wrong;
All is old and all is new,
Time goes by, time comes along.

Added by: Octavian

Translator: Octavian Cocoş
Language: English


see more poems written by: Mihai Eminescu



Share: