חלומו של אוֹרֶלְיוּס

© Israel Bar Kohav & Hakibbutz Hameuchad Publishing House/Tel Aviv Fund for Literature and Art
From: Pesukay Yareah
Tel Aviv: Hakibbutz Hameuchad Publishing House/Tel Aviv Fund for Literature and Art, 1999
Audio production: 2008 Literaturwerkstatt Berlin

Aurelius’ Dream

I do not believe in dreams.
I prefer the great books.
Nothing is missing in my Greek library
And what’s missing never was.

I was told my wife is in the garden,
Someone has taken her to the lake,
To lie with her in Roman twilight,
And upset the slumber of geese and deer.

I will saddle my horse, ride toward the Sabine women,
In the hills of the northern border,
The cold days are coming
To lay me down among my blue soldiers.

Soon I will forget it all
And all forget me.

Translated by Tal Rosenberg and Lisa Katz