by
Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933)
Only the wind knows he is gone
Language: English
Available translation(s): FRE GER
Only the wind knows he is gone,
Only the wind grieves,
The sun shines, the fields are sown,
Sparrows mate in the eaves;
But I heard the wind in the pines he planted
And the hemlocks overhead,
"His acres wake, for the year turns,
But he is asleep," it said.
About the headline (FAQ)
Note: According to Carol Schoen, in Sara Teasdale,
Twayne Publishers, 1986, page 150, the "W.E.W." in the title refers to W. E.
Wheeler, in memory of whom the poem is written.
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) (Guy Laffaille) , "Élégie au vent", copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Des Windes Klage (W.E.W.)", copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-03-23
Line count: 8
Word count: 50
Des Windes Klage (W.E.W.)
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the English
Dass er gegangen - der Wind weiß es nur,
es trauert nur der Wind,
die Sonne scheint, bestellt die Flur,
Spatzen am paaren sind.
Doch ich hört’ vom Wald , den er pflanzte, den Wind
aus Kiefer und Tanne klang’s her:
„Sein Land erwacht, denn das Frühjahr beginnt,
doch er ist entschlafen nunmehr.“
Translator's note about the title: Die Dichterin gedenkt W.E.Wheeler. Sara Teasdale , aus „Complete Poetical Works“ in „Berkshire Notes“
Authorship:
Based on:
- a text in English by Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933), "Wind Elegy (W.E.W.)"
This text was added to the website: 2020-08-12
Line count: 8
Word count: 53