Sunset

This bloodfilled sunset
Promises nothing good--
Only a night without dawn:
With the emptiness of fallen stars,
With restless nightwatches,
With a painful glow.

I know all its promises,
The quick red flicker of flame
In the windows of home.
It will soon grow dark. Help me, Lord,
To drain this bitter cup
To the bottom.

It will grow dark. Change into an eyeblink
This long night without dawn,
Without love, without dreams.
Lord, fill the emptiness of the skies
With my grief,
Deepen the oceans.

I know that in the divine wholeness
Even the star that falls into the sea
Does not find only emptiness--
Let my grief engulf
This bloodfilled sunset
And this night without dawn.

    --Leonardas Andriekus (1914-2003), Lithuania (translated by Jonas Zdanys)