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Rachmil Bryks
Do Not Despair
It is but a passing wind –
Do not despair, my child
We are old trees, deep and broad,
Rooted in the earth,
With large crowns
That adorn the world.
Strong gusts
May tear the leaves from us,
May break our branches,
But not our crowns.
Strong deep-rooted trees
Cannot be torn out by the wind,
Nor can they be uprooted.
We are eternal trees
Giving nourishing fruit to the world.
We will be eternal!
It is but a passing wind –
Do not despair, my child.
Lodz Ghetto, 1940.
Translated from the original Yiddish
“Nisht Fartsvayflen” by the poet's daughter
Bella Bryks-Klein
