To M. D.
You are a Hutzul,75
And I am a Hutzul—
The serdak76 both of us wear;
Both born in the forest,
Both christened in the Cheremsh,77
Played hide-and-seek with the Bear.
We knew not where luck would lead—
If this road meant good luck,
If that road meant bad luck,
Naught did we ever heed.
To both good fortune came.
She did not forget us;
Her bounty she gave us,
To both of us just the same.
Great lords she would have us be,
To dwell in a palace,
But ah, she was drunken!
Our Luck was fuddled, you see.
You are a Hutzul,
And I am a Hutzul—
She placed her sheep ’neath the Shears!
That’s how Luck has served us,
And pray who shall tell us
Just where the blame appears?