Die Leiter blieb noch unterm Feigenbaume stehen,
Doch er ist gelb und schon längst [leer gegessen]1
Von Schnäbeln und von Mündern, wem's zuerst geglückt.
 
Wird ihn der nächste Sommer grün und reich beladen sehn,
Und [kam]2 der Friede unterdessen,
Mag es ein [anderer]3 sein, der hier die Feigen pflückt.
 
Wir wären dann in kältere Breiten heimgegangen:
Da wächst kein Feigenbaum, [höchstens noch der Wein,
Ja, Äpfel, Birnen, Kirschen, wenn auch nicht Citronen.
 
Trotzdem gedeihn die Kinder dort mit roten Wangen.
Und fällt der Schnee, wir werden umso frischer sein
Und gern im wieder frei gewordnen Winter wohnen.]4

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View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Bertold Viertel, Der Lebenslauf. Gedichte, New York: Aurora Verlag, 1946, page 37

¹ Eisler: "leergegessen"
² Eisler: "kommt"
³ Eisler: "andrer"
⁴ Eisler: "Aber der Wein. / Fällt dort der Schnee, / Werden wir umso frischer sein / Und gern im wieder befreiten Winter wohnen."

Authorship

• by Berthold Viertel (1885 - 1953), "Kalifornischer Herbst", appears in Der Lebenslauf. Gedichte, in Gefährten im Exil [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)

• by Hanns Eisler (1898 - 1962), "L'automne californien", 1943, from Hollywooder Liederbuch, no. 30 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

• ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this text: Auditorium du Louvre , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 97

The ladder still remained standing under the fig tree,
But the tree is yellow and all its figs have long been consumed
By beaks and mouths, whoever was fortunate enough to get them first.
 
If the next summer sees it green and richly laden,
And if peace [came]1 in the meantime,
It may be someone else who picks the figs here.
 
We would then have returned home to colder regions:
There no fig tree grows, [at most grapevines,
Yes, apples, pears, cherries, though not lemons.
 
Nevertheless children thrive there with red cheeks.
And if snow falls, we shall be all the more alive
And shall live gladly in the winter that has become liberated once again.]2