Hadrian's Elegy Translation Poem by Michael Burch

Hadrian's Elegy

a modern English translation/interpretation of the Latin poem by Michael R. Burch

1.
Little soul,
little tramp,
little vagabond...
where are we fluttering off to,
so bedraggled, pale and woebegone,
who used to be so full of mirth?
Where are we going—from bad to worse?
Who'll laugh last? Was the joke on us?

2.
My delicate soul,
now aimlessly fluttering... drifting... unwhole,
former consort of my failing corpse...
Where are we going—from bad to worse?
From jail to hearse?

Where do we wander—fraught, pale and frail?

To hell?
To some place devoid of jests, mirth, happiness?
Is the joke on us?

Published by Brief Poems