by
Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928)
At Day‑Close in November
Language: English
Available translation(s): FRE GER GER
The ten hours' light is abating,
And a late bird wings across,
Where the pines, like waltzers waiting,
Give their black heads a toss.
Beech leaves, that yellow the noon-time,
Float past like specks in the eye;
I set every tree in my June time,
And now they obscure the sky.
And the children who ramble through here
Conceive that there never has been
A time when no tall trees grew here,
That none will in time be seen.
Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Christopher Park) , "À la tombée du jour en novembre", copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Novembertages Ende", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Bertram Kottmann) , "Novembertags Ende", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 79
Novembertages Ende
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the English
Zehn Stunden Licht sind am verblassen,
ein später Vogel flattert vorbei,
wo die Kiefern, wie Walzertänzer wartend,
werfen das schwarze Haupt zurück.
Blätter der Buchen vergolden den Mittag,
gaukeln vorbei wie Pünktchen im Auge;
im Sommer meines Lebens pflanzte ich jeden Baum,
und nun verdunklen sie den Himmel.
Und die Kinder, die durch die Gegend streifen,
empfinden, dass hier nie eine Zeit gewesen,
in der keine hohen Bäume wuchsen,
von denen keiner irgendwann zu sehen sein wird.
Text Authorship:
Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2013-11-04
Line count: 12
Word count: 77