All Works

קאַלט וועט זײַן.

Cold it will be.

Work 242 of 440

Page 294. 'Gas — heym eybike' continuation: the street calls with violence — 'a vint in a shoyb' (wind into windowpane), 'a foyst in a tir' (fist into door), 'brokh' (break). The poet commands his words: no more peaceful nest, no more dreaming in 'fridlekher demerung' (peaceful twilight) — 'un gut vos nito' (and good that there isn't). 'Hunger nokh umru' (hunger for unrest) replaces comfort. The warm nest must 'frir, farfrir, fargliver' (freeze, freeze through, stiffen). Words must turn their backs on the mourned nest and enter 'tsvishn fis un kopites un reder' (among feet and hooves and wheels). The personified words are 'grinoygike, blondhorike, zis-shoydirndike' (green-eyed, blonde-haired, sweet-shuddering) — vulnerable but ready. Then 'A yor Sako Vanzeti' (One Year Sacco Vanzetti) — written on the first anniversary of the August 1927 execution. They are cut into memory 'vi an ongeglieter meser in a vund' (like a red-hot knife in a wound). Death has 'poren' (wed/paired) them in 'farzigaltn bund' (sealed bond).

Yiddish Original

קאַלט וועט זײַן.

ווײַס וועט זײַן.

אַ ווינט אין אַ שויב אַרײַן.

אַ פֿויסט אין אַ טיר אַרײַן.

בראָך.

קאַלטער, ווײַסער בראָך.

ניטאָ מער קיין רואיקער נעסט,

ווערטער מײַנע.

און גוט וואָס ניטאָ.

ניטאָ מער וואו צו חלומען זיך

אין שטילער, אין פֿרידלעכער דעמערונג —

און גוט וואָס ניטאָ.

הונגער קומט.

הונגער נאָך אומרו.

ערשטער שטיין פֿון אומרו אין אײַך, ווערטער מײַנע.

וואַרעמער נעסט — חרוב.

פֿריר, וואַרעמער נעסט.

פֿריר,

פֿאַרפֿריר,

פֿאַרגליווער.

ווערטער מײַנע,

מיטן רוקן צום עלנטן חרוב,

מיטן רוקן צום אָפּגעקלאָגטן נעסט.

אין גאַס אַרײַן,

צווישן פֿיס און קאָפּיטעס און רעדער.

גאַס — היים אייביקע — וואַרט אויף אײַך,

גרינאויגיקע,

בלאָנדהאָריקע,

זיס־שוידערנדיקע ווערטער מײַנע.

אַ יאָר סאַקאָ וואַנזעטי

איר האָט זיך אײַנגעשניטן אין אונדזער זכּרון,

ווי אַן אָנגעגליטער מעסער אין אַ וואונד:

צו וועמען נאָך אַזוי האָט דער טויט געקענט פּאָרן

אין אַזאַ פֿאַרזיגלטן בונד?

Transliteration

Kalt vet zayn.

Vays vet zayn.

A vint in a shoyb arayn.

A foyst in a tir arayn.

Brokh.

Kalter, vayser brokh.

Nito mer keyn ruiker nest,

verter mayne.

Un gut vos nito.

Nito mer vu tsu kholemen zikh

in shtiler, in fridlekher demerung —

un gut vos nito.

Hunger kumt.

Hunger nokh umru.

Ershter shteyn fun umru in aykh, verter mayne.

Varemer nest — khorev.

Frir, varemer nest.

Frir,

farfrir,

fargliver.

Verter mayne,

mitn rukn tsum elntn khorev,

mitn rukn tsum opgeklogtn nest.

In gas arayn,

tsvishn fis un kopites un reder.

Gas — heym eybike — vart oyf aykh,

grinoygikeblondhorikezis-shoydirndike verter mayne.

A yor Sako Vanzeti

Ir hot zikh ayngeshnitn in undzer zikorn,

vi an ongeglieter meser in a vund:

tsu vemen nokh azoy hot der toyt gekent porn

in aza farzilgtn bund?

English Translation

Cold it will be.

White it will be.

A wind into a windowpane.

A fist into a door.

Break.

Cold, white break.

No more any peaceful nest,

my words.

And good that there isn't.

No more where to dream oneself

in quiet, in peaceful twilight —

and good that there isn't.

Hunger comes.

Hunger for unrest.

First stone of unrest in you, my words.

Warm nest — ruined.

Freeze, warm nest.

Freeze,

freeze through,

stiffen.

My words,

with back to the lonely ruin,

with back to the mourned nest.

Into the street,

among feet and hooves and wheels.

Street — eternal home — waits for you,

green-eyed,

blonde-haired,

sweet-shuddering words of mine.

A Year Sacco Vanzetti

You have cut yourselves into our memory,

like a red-hot knife into a wound:

whom else has death so been able to wed

in such a sealed bond?

TRANSLATOR’S NOTE

Page 294. 'Gas — heym eybike' continuation: the street calls with violence — 'a vint in a shoyb' (wind into windowpane), 'a foyst in a tir' (fist into door), 'brokh' (break). The poet commands his words: no more peaceful nest, no more dreaming in 'fridlekher demerung' (peaceful twilight) — 'un gut vos nito' (and good that there isn't). 'Hunger nokh umru' (hunger for unrest) replaces comfort. The warm nest must 'frir, farfrir, fargliver' (freeze, freeze through, stiffen). Words must turn their backs on the mourned nest and enter 'tsvishn fis un kopites un reder' (among feet and hooves and wheels). The personified words are 'grinoygike, blondhorike, zis-shoydirndike' (green-eyed, blonde-haired, sweet-shuddering) — vulnerable but ready. Then 'A yor Sako Vanzeti' (One Year Sacco Vanzetti) — written on the first anniversary of the August 1927 execution. They are cut into memory 'vi an ongeglieter meser in a vund' (like a red-hot knife in a wound). Death has 'poren' (wed/paired) them in 'farzigaltn bund' (sealed bond).

/ previous & next poem·14 toggle columns·hover a line to align all versions

Cold it will be. · H. Leivick: Complete Works · Half-Voll Attempts