Elämä, A poem by Edith Södergran (In Finnish, see English translation below)

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Uploaded by on Aug 6, 2009

This is a haunting poem (In Finnish) by Swedish-speaking Finnish Poet Edith Södergran (1892-1923).
The music is by Catalonian composer Federico Mompou (1893-1987).

Life

I, my own prisoner, say so:
life is not the springtime clad in light green velvet,
or a caress that one seldom receives,
life is not a resolve to go
or two white arms that hold one back.
Life is the narrow ring that holds us captive,
the invisible circle we never cross,
life is nearby happiness that passes us by,
and the thousand steps we cannot bring ourselves to take.
Life is to despise oneself
and to lie motionless on the bottom of a well
and to know that the sun is shining up there
and golden birds are flying through the air
and the days swift as arrows are shooting by.
Life is to wave a short farewell and go home and sleep . .
Life is to be a foreigner to oneself
and a new mask for every other person who comes.
Life is to be careless with one's own happiness
and to push away the unique moment,
life is to think oneself weak and not to dare.

translation © 2010 David McDuff

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Uploader Comments (mirablisimus)

  • Kiitos kommenteistasi! Runo on minusta hyvin koskettava, ja vaikka siinä piinalla negatiivisuus kelluu, se on minusta toivosta täynnä, elämä rajallinen, elämä rajattomaton...

    Kiva tietä että teet runovideoita, käyn katsomassa niitä ja kerron kommentit myöhemmin. Itsella on hyvin monta "projekteja", mutta aikaa ei aina riitää...

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  • Beautiful, just one little remark so no one gets miss leaded, Mompou is world-known as Spanish composer. Catalonia is part of Spain:)

  • ja musiikki!

  • Hei.. Miksi tuo ahdistava runo tuntuu niin anteeksiantavalta samalla, en lähde määrittämään, mutta kaunis se on ja kauniisti olet sen rytmittänyt, antanut sanoille aikaa.. Itse myös runovideoita tekevänä ihmisenä ilahduin kun joku muukin on semmoisen tehnyt elikkä tänne uloskanavoinut.

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