A Tear and a Smile

By Khalil Gibran

I would not exchange the sorrows of my heart

For the joys of the multitude.

And I would not have the tears that sadness makes

To flow from my every part turn into laughter.

I would that my life remain a tear and a smile.

A tear to purify my heart and give me understanding

Of life’s secrets and hidden things.

A smile to draw me nigh to the sons of my kind and

To be a symbol of my glorification of the gods.

A tear to unite me with those of broken heart;

A smile to be a sign of my joy in existence.

I would rather that I died in yearning and longing than that I live Weary and despairing.

I want the hunger for love and beauty to be in the

Depths of my spirit, for I have seen those who are

Satisfied the most wretched of people.

I have heard the sigh of those in yearning and Longing, and it is sweeter than the sweetest melody.

With evening’s coming the flower folds her petals

And sleeps, embracing her longing.

At morning’s approach she opens her lips to meet

The sun’s kiss.

The life of a flower is longing and fulfilment.

A tear and a smile.

Please enjoy the great Elisabeth Schwarzkopf singing “Im Abendro” the last song from Richard Strauss’s Vier Letzte Lieder, or Four Last Songs: https://mettarefuge.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/04-vier-letzte-lieder_-im-abendrot.mp3

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