A Tale of Times Long Past

I shall tell of times long past, Long past, and never seen; I shall tie an old man to an old woman, To an old woman with a crooked belly.

I shall tell of times long past,

Long past, and never seen;

I shall tie an old man to an old woman,

To an old woman with a crooked belly.

That is no wonder, no marvel at all,

I have seen wonders stranger than that:

In the middle of the sea, a grain-drying barn is burning,

Across the open field, a ship is sailing!

That is no wonder, no marvel at all,

Here is a wonder stranger still:

A little dog gave birth to a bull calf,

A little pig laid an egg!

That is no wonder, no marvel at all,

I have seen wonders stranger than that:

Men are building fish weirs in the street,

Building fish weirs, catching fish!

That is no wonder, no marvel at all,

I have seen wonders stranger than that:

A bear is flying across the sky,

Waving its little ears and paws,

Steering with its little grey tail;

Up in an oak, a mare barked at a squirrel,

In a stall, a female dog stands in harness,

In a stake-fenced pen, a sheep has built a nest!

Do not marvel at that wonder either:

A cow is skiing down a hill,

Legs spread wide, eyes bulging!

That too is no wonder, no marvel at all,

I have seen wonders stranger than that:

A son carted sheaves with his mother pulling,

His young wife was the side horse;

The son urged his mother on,

Held his young wife back!

I saw another wondrous marvel:

A daughter-in-law fights her mother-in-law,

They fight a mighty battle with wooden whisks,

They fired spoons into the open field;

They shot a Tatar who was already dead,

They took his reed-mat coat,

They took his little bast belt,

They took his birch-bark boots.

To the rich but stingy man, who brews no beer,

Who gives us young fellows neither food nor drink,

May God send a cat's sighing,

A dog's sobbing.

To the man who is not rich but generous,

Who brews beer and gives us young fellows drink,

May God send increase in the field,

Extra grain on the threshing floor,

Plenty of dough in the kneading trough,

Dishes crowded on the table.

A man grew tipsy on that beer,

And tipsy, he lies on top of the shed,

A crumb by his mouth—one and a half large cups…