All Soul’s Day | I often take a little brown box into my hands

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by F. Tragau

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Allerseelen

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

Ein braunes Kästchen nehm' ich oft zur Hand;
Ein Ring liegt d'rin, viel alter Blumentand,
Man kann die Rosen d'runter kaum erkennen.
In grauen Zweigen liegt verborgen tief
Ein kleiner, lieber, blaßgeküßter Brief,
Ein fahles Bildniß und -- viel tausend Thränen.
Was theures Todtes dieser Schrank umschließt,
Welch' schwerer Jammer hier begraben ist,
Kann mir kein Kirchhof auf der Welt erzählen.
Streift nur mein Blick den kleinen Todtenschrank,
Werd' ich zum Sterben selber müd' und krank . . .
So hab' ich alle Tage -- Allerseelen.

Confirmed with Fliegende Blätter, 97. Band (1892), Nro. 2470, page 196

Text Authorship:

by F. Tragau , "Allerseelen" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "All Soul’s Day", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2016-11-01
Line count: 12
Word count: 84

All Soul’s Day

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

I often take a little brown box into my hands;
A ring lies in it, much old flower-trumpery,
One can scarcely recognize the roses among it.
In grey twigs, deeply hidden, lies
A small dear letter, faded by countless kisses,
A pale image and -- many thousands of tears.
What precious dead are held within this box,
What heavy misery is buried here --
No churchyard in the world can tell of such sorrow.
If my eyes fall even briefly upon the little casket,
I become weary and sick unto death . . .
For me is thus every day -- All Soul’s Day.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2016 by Sharon Krebs, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by F. Tragau , "Allerseelen"
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2016-11-01
Line count: 12
Word count: 101