Divine Lynn Anderson in my headphones and Igor Guberman in front of my eyes as I am on my way to join the protest rally in Sacharov Avenue, Moscow to support the independent candidates who were illegally banned from the electoral run.
I beg your pardon
I never promised you a rose garden
Along with the sunshine
There’s gotta be a little rain sometimes.
I could promise you things like big diamond rings
But you don’t find roses growin’ on stalks of clover
So you better think it over
Well if sweet-talkin’ you could make it come true
I would give you the world right now on a silver platter
But what would it matter
So smile for a while and let’s be jolly
Love shouldn’t be so melancholy
Come along and share the good times while we can.
***
Свобода к нам не делает ни шагу,
не видя нашей страсти очевидной:
свобода любит дерзость и отвагу,
а с трусами становится фригидной.
Freedom doesn’t take a single step towards us,
If She doesn’t see our evident passion,
Freedom loves those who are courageous
And becomes frigid with the cowards.
Free elections for every society in the world. But no one will grant this right from above. It should be taken.
To cut a rose one has to get through the thorns. Rose garden, you know.
English title: Igor Guberman “Gariki”
Original title (Russian): Игорь Губерман “Гарики”
Original title (English): Lynn Anderson “Rose Garden” , 1970
First published in the Levinarium Telegram Channel (now closed and deleted)