Günter Eich: Listening to the rain

Günter Eich

The Rain’s Messages

(Botschaften des Regens)

News, that’s meant for me
shaken from rain to rain
scattering across slates and tiles
spreads like a virus, like unwelcome
contraband -

Across the wall the windowpanes
rattle their alphabets
and the rain speaks
in the language I thought
only I could understand -

the rain sends
its despairing bulletins
the rain radios misery
and falls blaming, recriminating
as if of all people
I should be held accountable

Let me say this as clearly as I can
I’m not afraid of the rain
or its accusations
nor of whoever sent them
When the time is right, and only then
I’ll go outside and answer him

version by The Cat Flap

Time of the sun

Le regret de la terre
(Jules Supervielle, 1884-1960)

One day we’ll look back on it       the time of the sun
when light fell on the smallest twig
on the old woman the astonished girl
when it washed with colour everything it touched
followed the galloping horse and eased when he did

that unforgettable time on earth
when if we dropped something it made a noise
and like connoisseurs we took in the world
our ears caught every nuance of air
and we knew our friends by their footsteps

time we walked out to gather flowers or stones
that time we could never catch hold of a cloud

and it’s all our hands can master now

translation by The Flat Cap