Poem
Fernando Pessoa
Since we do nothing in this confused world
Since we do nothing in this confused worldThat lasts or that, lasting, is of any worth,
And even what’s useful for us we lose
So soon, with our own lives,
Let us prefer the pleasure of the moment
To an absurd concern with the future,
Whose only certainty is the harm we suffer now
To pay for its prosperity.
Tomorrow doesn’t exist. This moment
Alone is mine, and I am only who
Exists in this instant, which might be the last
Of the self I pretend to be.
© Translation: 2006, Richard Zenith
From: A Little Larger Than the Entire Universe: Selected Poems
Publisher: Penguin, New York, 2006
From: A Little Larger Than the Entire Universe: Selected Poems
Publisher: Penguin, New York, 2006
Since we do nothing in this confused world
Pois que nada que dure, ou que, durando,
Valha, neste confuso mundo obramos,
E o mesmo útil para nós perdemos
Connosco, cedo, cedo,
O prazer do momento anteponhamos
À absurda cura do futuro, cuja
Certeza única é o mal presente
Com que o seu bem compramos.
Amanhã não existe. Meu somente
É o momento, eu só quem existe
Neste instante, que pode o derradeiro
Ser de quem finjo ser.
Valha, neste confuso mundo obramos,
E o mesmo útil para nós perdemos
Connosco, cedo, cedo,
O prazer do momento anteponhamos
À absurda cura do futuro, cuja
Certeza única é o mal presente
Com que o seu bem compramos.
Amanhã não existe. Meu somente
É o momento, eu só quem existe
Neste instante, que pode o derradeiro
Ser de quem finjo ser.
© 1993, Ricardo Reis (Fernando Pessoa)
From: Poesia
Publisher: Assírio & Alvim, Lisbon
From: Poesia
Publisher: Assírio & Alvim, Lisbon
Poems
Poems of Fernando Pessoa
Close
Since we do nothing in this confused world
Since we do nothing in this confused worldThat lasts or that, lasting, is of any worth,
And even what’s useful for us we lose
So soon, with our own lives,
Let us prefer the pleasure of the moment
To an absurd concern with the future,
Whose only certainty is the harm we suffer now
To pay for its prosperity.
Tomorrow doesn’t exist. This moment
Alone is mine, and I am only who
Exists in this instant, which might be the last
Of the self I pretend to be.
© 2006, Richard Zenith
From: A Little Larger Than the Entire Universe: Selected Poems
Publisher: 2006, Penguin, New York
From: A Little Larger Than the Entire Universe: Selected Poems
Publisher: 2006, Penguin, New York
Since we do nothing in this confused world
Since we do nothing in this confused worldThat lasts or that, lasting, is of any worth,
And even what’s useful for us we lose
So soon, with our own lives,
Let us prefer the pleasure of the moment
To an absurd concern with the future,
Whose only certainty is the harm we suffer now
To pay for its prosperity.
Tomorrow doesn’t exist. This moment
Alone is mine, and I am only who
Exists in this instant, which might be the last
Of the self I pretend to be.
© 2006, Richard Zenith
From: A Little Larger Than the Entire Universe: Selected Poems
Publisher: 2006, Penguin, New York
From: A Little Larger Than the Entire Universe: Selected Poems
Publisher: 2006, Penguin, New York
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