Short Poems

In my body you search the mountain
for the sun buried in its forest.
In your body I search for the boat
adrift in the middle of the night.

Could we as mortals but our end foresee,
How little in our minds the world would be;
Could we as spirits but this life renew,
And be again incarnate as we were,
How little might be done like what we do,
How little cared for that which now is most our care

Bygningen hist, hvor Kanoner er lagt, var fordum et Kloster,
Siden en Fæstning det blev, nu er det Pak-Huus for Korn.
Saadan gaaer Humaniteten frem! I barbariske Tider
Dyrkedes Gud, saa Krig, endelig Ager og Eng.

Coolness of the melons
flecked with mud
in the morning dew.


Translated by Robert Hass

Coolness--
the sound of the bell
as it leaves the bell.


Translated by Robert Hass

I walked abroad in Easter Park,
I heard the wild dog's distant bark,
I knew my Lord was risen again, -
Wild dog, wild dog, you bark in vain.

With the last of my strength
I throw myself into a sleep;
only the breath of the eternal Creator
can wake me again.

O Hunger, Hunger, I will harness thee
And make thee harrow all my spirit's glebe.
Of old the blind bard Herve sang so sweet
He made a wolf to plow his land.

Living a whole life has three conditions:
absorbing work which demands and brings fulfilment,
a group of friends with whom to exchange minds,
and a full love to be lost in all the time.

Of these I have the easier two,
but lack the third in lacking you.

Flyv mod Syd, drik Solskin og folkelig Sang,
Bliv Dig selv, ja selv, ja, helst ikke Andet,
Men gro, fortjen Dig en Beethovens Rang,
Du Søn fra Jenny Linds Tonelandet!