by
John Henry Mackay (1864 - 1933)
Am Wegrand
Language: German (Deutsch)
Tausend Menschen ziehen vorüber,
Den ich ersehne, er ist nicht dabei!
Ruhlos fliegen die Blicke hinüber,
Fragen den Eilenden, ob er es sei...
Aber sie fragen und fragen vergebens.
Keiner gibt Antwort: "Hier bin ich. Sei still."
Sehnsucht erfüllt die Bezirke des Lebens,
Welche Erfüllung nicht füllen will.
Und so steh ich am Wegrand-Strande,
Während die Menge vorüberfließt,
Bis erblindet vom Sonnenbrande
Mein ermüdetes Aug' sich schließt.
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):
- ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "By the roadside", copyright ©
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: 67
By the roadside
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch)
A thousand people go past,
but the man I'm searching for - he is not there!
Restlessly my eyes fly around,
asking if that hurrying man over there is the one...
But they ask and ask in vain.
No one gives the answer, "Here I am. Be at ease."
Longing fills the circle of my life:
a fulfillment that will not be filled.
And so I stand by the roadside strand,
while the crowd flows by,
until, blinded by the burning sun,
my weary eyes close.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust, (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.
Based on:
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 86