When fishes flew and forests walked And figs grew upon thorn, Some moment when the moon was blood Then surely I was born. With monstrous head and sickening cry And ears like errant wings, The devil's walking parody On all four-footed things. The tattered outlaw of the earth, Of ancient crooked will; Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb, I keep my secret still. Fools! For I also had my hour; One far fierce hour and sweet: There was a shout about my ears, And palms before my feet.
Meditatio. Twenty-one more or less parabolic songs
Song Cycle by Wilhelm Rettich (1892 - 1988)
14. The donkey  [sung text not yet checked]
Language: English
Text Authorship:
- by Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874 - 1936), "The donkey", appears in The Wild Knight and Other Poems, first published 1900
See other settings of this text.
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Walter A. Aue) , "Der Esel", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Total word count: 89