Solemn Hour

Whoever now weeps somewhere in the world,
weeps without reason in the world,
weeps over me.

Whoever now laughs somewhere in the night,
laughs without reason in the night,
laughs at me.

Whoever now wanders somewhere in the world,
wanders without reason in the world,
wanders toward me.

Whoever now dies somewhere in the world,
dies without reason in the world,
looks at me.

~Rainer Maria Rilke, translated by Albert Ernest Flemming

Sense Of Something Coming

I am like a flag in the center of open space.
I sense ahead the wind which is coming, and must live it through.
While the things of the world still do not move:
The doors still close softly, and the chimneys are full of silence,
The windows do not rattle yet, and the dust still lies down.

I already know the storm, and I am troubled as the sea.
I leap out, and fall back,
And throw myself out, and am absolutely alone in the great storm.

~Rainier Maria Rilke