Don't Go Far Off

 Don't go far off, not even for a day, because --
 because -- I don't know how to say it: a day is long
 and I will be waiting for you, as in an empty station
 when the trains are parked off somewhere else, asleep.

 Don't leave me, even for an hour, because
 then the little drops of anguish will all run together,
 the smoke that roams looking for a home will drift
 into me, choking my lost heart.

 Oh, may your silhouette never dissolve on the beach;
 may your eyelids never flutter into the empty distance.
 Don't leave me for a second, my dearest,

 because in that moment you'll have gone so far
 I'll wander mazily over all the earth, asking,
 Will you come back? Will you leave me here, dying?

Commentary

In passing through a transient spell of self-inflicted grief, I’m finding a certain measure of solace in several of Neruda’s poems – not so much as a distraction, but as a gentle voice that understands and speaks the pain. Although this poem reflects only an approximation of the sentiment, the metaphors strike the right sort of chord, helping convey the appropriate sense of (potential) loss. (I’ll get over this bottomless black mood in a few days, so don’t bother sympathizing :))

— Sitaram

The Wondering Minstrels, poem #1149 · 19 January 2003

Guest poem submitted by Sitaram Iyer

Fair use

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From the Wondering Minstrels mailing list, 1999–2008.

Vivian Eden · 19 January 2003

A lovely poem – who translated it?

Thanks,
Vivian Eden

Kavitha Vishwanath · 19 January 2003

hi,

loved this poem. struck a chord somewhere… I guess I too am recovering from the depths of despondency.. so this one came like a balm to a sore heart. not that the poem helped me get over the anguish… just felt good that there are other people in the boat, that I am not alone…

Kathy T. Wehrenberg · 20 January 2003

How do I post a comment at the end of a poem? This is my first time, but Neruda is one of my favorite poets, and this one is the best love poem I’ve ever read. The personification of a train being asleep, the smoke looking for a home (how great!) makes a beautiful effect of imagery. I love the word “mazily” !

Benita Kape · 21 January 2003

I too looked at this in the light of a recent grief. The story being a little too long for here; but suffice it to say that because of recent happening it was an old grief revived. The loss of a babe many years ago and as I grow older with no photos as reminders it is in my memories only that I hold him. What would it be like if there was no recall?

For me this bought up the strength and the fragility of our connections one to another.

Benita