4umi Hermann Hesse : Poetry / Without You

Without You

My Pillow gazes upon me at night
Empty as a gravestone;
I never thought it would be so bitter
To be alone,
Not to lie down asleep in your hair.
I lie alone in a silent house,
The hanging lamp darkened,
And gently stretch out my hands
To gather in yours,
And softly press my warm mouth
Toward you, and kiss myself, exhausted and weak-
Then suddenly I'm awake
And all around me the cold night grows still.
The star in the window shines clearly-
Where is your blond hair,
Where your sweet mouth?
Now I drink pain in every delight
And poison in every wine;
I never knew it would be so bitter
To be alone,
Alone, without you.

In a translation by James Wright.

- --oOo-- -

Hermann Hesse Siddhartha Der Steppenwolf Poetry I Know, You Walk Lonesome Night A Swarm of Gnats At Night on the High Seas The Poet How Heavy the Days Lying in Grass On a Journey Thinking of a Friend at Night Without You