І мовить птах: "Не рвися,
Завдавши серцю скрути,
Що зробиш - розробити,
Минуле знов вернути".

Іван Франко

2002

Parable about the Unwise

One day a hunter set a trap,
A bird was caught in snare,
He took it, but the birdie small
Had something to declare.

She said, “Oh noble marksman,
I offer you a deal,
You see, I’m just a handful,
I’ll make a poor meal.

But if you grant my freedom,
I’ll pay a better price:
My tiny brain can give you
Three pieces of advice.”

The hunter thought, “My goodness,
Oh, what a great surprise!
Maybe this dwarfish teacher
Will give me good advice?”

And says, “My tiny birdie,
If all you say is true,
I’ll set you free, believe me,
I promise that to you.”

And says the bird, “You shouldn’t
Regret, my hunter young,
Whatever that has happened
And cannot be undone.

And thought the hunter, “Really,
We shouldn’t, old and young,
Regret the things that happened
And cannot be undone!”

And says the bird, “My hunter,
Don’t rend your heart in vain,
What’s done – is done, you cannot
Return the past again.”

And says the bird, “Believe not
All wonders and sensation,
All rumors strange or any
Suspicious information.”

The hunter pondered…”Really,
The folks can talk a lot,
But aren’t these talks deceitful?
They are, on second thought!”

“Well, yours are sound ideas”,-
The hunter answered then,-
“So you can fly, but never
Get into traps again!”

The bird flashed as a lightning
When the shooter let her go,
And having sat in branches,
She told the hunter so:

“Wow! What a stupid hunter,
Good-bye, but you must know:
I have a pearl inside me
That’s bigger than a stone.

It’s just within my belly
And you could’ve had it, man…”
The hunter jumped to snatch her,
To catch the bird again,

But having failed, he begged her,
He used the sweetest words,
“Come back, I’ll be your daddy,
My little clever bird!

You’ll live as richest ladies,
You’ll eat from golden dish,
Return to me, my birdie,
I’ll give you what you wish!”

“I can’t believe that someone
Could be as dull as that;
Well, all my wise instruction
You managed to forget!

You did a worthy action
You set me free, indeed,
How could you in a minute
Regret your noble deed?

And then you wished by begging
To have me back again,
Your eloquence was perfect
But it was all in vain.

And why? Because you trusted
The things which couldn’t be:
That I’ve a pearl inside me
That’s twice as large as me!”

Переклад Галини Кожушко (Кошулап)

Оскільки мені дуже подобаються притчі Івана Франка, одного дня захотілося перекласти його "Притчу про нерозум". Можливо ще тому, що цей рік був для мене переломним і знаковим, і я неначе хотіла цим сказати собі, що мені вдасться перегорнути нову сторінку життя, залишивши позаду якісь образи і негаразди. Треба жити теперішнім і майбутнім, не втрачаючи оптимізму!