The Gypsy Woman
The gypsy knew in advance
Our lives are crossed by
nights
We bade her fare-thee-well
and then
Hope withdrew from these
wells
Clumsy as a tame bear love
Danced upright whenever we
wished
And the bluebird molted
its feathers
And the mendicants lost
their Ave
We all know well enough
we’re damned
But hope of love along the
way
Makes us ponder hand in
hand
What the gypsy had
foretold
Apollinaire “La
tzigane”
Translation by Jack
Hayes © 2017
Image links to its source
on Wiki Commons:
“Gitana de perfil”
(“Profile of a Gypsy”): Isidre Nonell
(1872–1911). Oil on canvas; 1902. Public domain.
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