Lines From "The Princess"

Translated by Vera Rich

A village! And the heart again
May rest... A village in Ukraine —
Like an egg gay with Easter dyes:
In woodland green the village hides;
The gardens flower, homes gleam white,
A mansion looms upon the height
Like some strange marvel. On all sides
Stand broad-leaved poplars; there again
Is forest, forest-land, and plain,
Blue hills beyond the Dnipro's tide...
And high above, the Lord abides!

                       1847, Orsk Fortress - 1858, Nizhniy Novgorod