Maieutikos

The Shoulders Bear the World
By Carlos Drummond de Andrade
(Translated by Tony Marmo)

The shoulders bear the world,
There comes a time when one no more says ‘oh my God!’
A time of absolute purging,
When one no more says: ‘my love’,
For love turned out to be useless.
And the eyes don’t cry.
And the hands just perform the hard work.
And the heart is dry.

In vain women knock at your door, you will not open.
You ended up alone, the light is off,
but under the shadow your eyes shine enormous.
You are all certainty, you do not know how to suffer.
And from your friends you expect nothing.

What matter if old age comes: what is it after all?
Your shoulders bear the world
and it weighs no more than a child.
Wars, famine, arguments within buildings
only prove that life gos on
and not everyone has freed himself yet.
Some deem the show barbaric:
They (the frail people) prefer to die.
A time has come when death is useless.
When to live is an order.
Just live life, no mystification.

posted by Tony Marmo @ 6:05:00 PM