THE LOVING SHEPHERD LOST HIS STAFF

The loving shepherd lost his staff,
And the sheep lost their way from the hillside,
And, from thinking too much, he didn’t even touch the flute he brought to play.
No one appeared to him or disappeared. He never found the staff again.
Others, cursing him, gathered the sheep.
No-one had loved him, after all.

Once he raised from the hill of false truth, he saw everything;
The great valleys filled with the same eternal green,
The great mountains far away, more real than any feeling,
The whole reality, the sky and the air and fields that exist, are present.
(And again the very air, which he’s been missing for so long, was fresh in his lungs)
And felt again the open air, through the pain, a kind of freedom for the heart.

David Scanlon – England – (1963 – )

Pessoa, F. (2018) Poems of Alberto Caeiro. In Portuguese and translated to English by David Scanlon. The Foolish Poet Press, Wilmslow, Portugal. THE LOVING SHEPHERD LOST HIS STAFF. Page Number 10.

O pastor amoroso perdeu o cajado,
E as ovelhas tresmalharam-se pela encosta,
E, de tanto pensar, nem tocou a flauta que trouxe para tocar.
Ninguém lhe apareceu ou desapareceu. Nunca mais encontrou o cajado.
Outros, praguejando contra ele, recolheram-lhe as ovelhas.
Ninguém o tinha amado, afinal.

Quando se ergueu da encosta e da verdade falsa, viu tudo;
Os grandes vales cheios dos mesmos verdes de sempre,
As grandes montanhas longe, mais reais que qualquer sentimento,
A realidade toda, com o céu e o ar e os campos que existem, estão presentes.
(E de novo o ar, que lhe faltara tanto tempo, lhe entrou fresco nos pulmões)
E sentiu que de novo o ar lhe abria, mas com dor, uma liberdade no peito.

Fernando Pessoa

Fernando Pessoa – Portugal – (1888 - 1935)

Caeiro, A. (1930)[1946] ”O Pastor Amoroso”  In Poemas de Alberto Caeiro. Fernando Pessoa (Nota explicativa e notas de João Gaspar Simões e Luiz de Montalvor.). Ática: Lisboa.

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