Songs Out of the Head of Papusza

 

Gili

 the little song, the diamond, a poem-song 

adapted from the Polish Romany of Papusza

with the assistance of Karolina Ossowska.

 Papusza's often improvised lyrics were transcribed 

during the final moments of the experience of the 

tabor culture and her name in Romany means "doll" 

& she speaks not of poems but of 

"songs out of the head of Papusza"

the locution used is familiar, often, that is,

"a person" is called "a gypsy" -- as if to say,

"one of our human family". 

the forest girls are going into

the forest, the Gypsy girls

young & pretty 

as blackberries

going into the forest, 

the forest girls, singing

we would like to wear earrings

golden ones,

all the while their eyes go shining

like true gold

the teeth white like pearls

little Gypsy girls singing

pretty as blackberries

where are those earrings?

have those earrings flown

into the forest?

& will none of the city-smiths

here forge

earrings of gold?

will no one make

earrings for them?

they run, calling

 "great golden earrings!

great golden earrings!

where are you today"?

my black eyes are looking for them

in the darkness now

 & the fires almost gone

ah, wind don't blow

so fiercely... please, don't blow...

and still the songs grow

 ever more silent

while the forest

more silent

took their songs

off into the world

& brought them back again

 & whenever the oak leaf falls

on the girls' knees

the Gypsy girls

 with eyes of true gold

fall upon the oak's leaves

on their knees & they run, crying:

we will make of golden

oak-leaves

our earrings

shining like diamonds

and she makes the oaken leaves

their golden earrings

which they sing about

in turns