Le soldat (French and English)
French:
Un soldat solitaire,
loin de la campagne,
permanent comme un menhir,
arpente la terre,
de haut en haut.
Jeté devant lui:
les boucliers,
les casques,
les épées,
même les esprits anciens,
oublié aux âges.
Comme des contes dans le vent.
Comme le verre à sable,
et puis le sable à la poussière.
Barbare!
Certains disent.
Mais c’est la vie.
Tout tombe à l’heure,
même les Romains,
même les Dieux,
même les menhirs.
English:
A lone soldier,
far from the countryside,
standing* like a stone,**
surveys the ground,
from up on high.
Strewn before him:
shields,
helmets,
swords,
even ancient spirits,
forgotten to the ages.
Like tales in the wind.
Like glass to sand,
and then the sand to dust.
Barbaric!
Some say.
But such is life.
Everything falls to time,
even the Romans,
even Gods,
even stones.
*Doesn't have the same impact, as the French plays on the multiple meanings: standing, permanent, continuous.
** A menhir is a large upright stone that forms a prehistoric monument. Doesn't sound as good in English though.