Swallow, oh, swallow, save this day!
Smart tailor of skies,
sharp-winged one,
tail like scissors,
beak needlelike,
song a sudden seam and sew, see!
mending a torn heart.
Swallow, oh swallow, save this day!
Sifting existence,
stitch what is threadbare
with tender power,
mend what is flawed
fluttering flapping
far in the firmament.
Swallow, oh, swallow, your song is a prayer:
spring, cleanse,
smoke, reconcile,
so spirit will wave
without a stain
from ancient grove to grove.
Swallow, oh, swallow, swift spirited
smart tailor of the skies,
sharp-winged one –
mend the world with song’s silken thread,
with saliva, with feather, fix the heart’s nest,
fasten, repeat.
Fix, fasten, repeat,
fix, fasten, repeat.
Swallow, oh, swallow, save this day!
Translated by Adam Cullen
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