The Wish | If some good fairy had sewn wings to my back

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by Georges Richard van Ormelingen (1865 - 1906), as George Vanor

Translation © by Faith J. Cormier

Souhait

Language: French (Français)

Our translations: ENG

Si quelque bonne fée avait cousu des ailes
À mon dos fatigné du fardeau du malheur,
Je n'irais pas ainsi que ces papillons frêles
Me bercer dans le doux calice de la fleur.

Rempli d'un seul désir, j'oublierais dans ma course
Les arbres pleins de nids qui charment les chemins,
Du doux gazouillement des oiseaux, et la source
Où boivent les enfants dans le creux de leurs mains.

Loin des blés soleillés qu'un matin d'or arrose,
Sans m'énivrer joyeux à l'urne d'un lys blanc,
Sans poser mon léger pied sur la rose, rose,
Loin des coquelicots je prendrais mon élan.

J'accourais, lutin bleu, vers toi, d'où tout rayonne
Sur tes lèvres en fleurs je saurais me poser,
Puis je m'envolerais de ta bouche mignonne 
Ayant bu ton haleine et cueilli ton baiser.

Text Authorship:

by Georges Richard van Ormelingen (1865 - 1906), as George Vanor [author's text not yet checked 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 Cécile Chaminade (1857 - 1944), "Souhait", published 1886. [medium voice and piano] [ sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Faith J. Cormier) , "The Wish", copyright © 2000, (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: 16
Word count: 132

The Wish

Language: English after the French (Français)

 If some good fairy had sewn wings to my back,
 weary under the burden of sorrow,
 I would not follow these frail butterflies
 to rock in the flower's sweet calyx.
 
 Filled with one desire alone, I would forget in my haste
 the trees full of nests that lend charm to the road,
 the sweet cooing of birds and the spring
 where children drink from cupped hands.
 
 Far from the wheat, golden in the morning sun,
 without drinking deeply from the urn of a white lily
 or setting my light foot on a rose,
 far from the poppies I would speed.
 
 I would hasten to you, blue sprite, source of all radiance.
 I would alight on your flowered lips,
 then fly from your sweet mouth,
 having drunk your breath and gathered your kiss.

Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2000 by Faith J. Cormier, (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 French (Français) by Georges Richard van Ormelingen (1865 - 1906), as George Vanor
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 133