Captivity - command - no surrender, - they don’t surrender, Though none of them gets a decoration. Only the black crows spin in swarms Over the dead bodies of our warriors. The god of war clings to his war-chariot, - And buried in the earth the soldiers lie. From somewhere appear white birds Over the dead bodies of our soldiers. After death they’ll all find their own birds - Thus the white birds are for our warriors, Now and the crows - as if over the carrion - spin Over the black columns of the enemies.
© Elisabeth Jelinek. Translation, 2018