The following is from his extensive work, Metai — sometimes translated as The Year, and sometimes as The Seasons — which is 2,997 lines in length, and depicts the cycle of life for Lithuanian serfs in East Prussia. Donelaitis did not publish this work in his own lifetime. It is considered the first classic Lithuanian language poem. Its’ first publication was in a shortened version called Metai in 1818, in both Lithuanian and a translation into German.
Donelaitis, in this part of the longer work describes the fading of summer from the viewpoint of his peasant agricultural workers and the world around them:
------There, where the black hawk fed his young on chicken meat,
------And where the raven brought a gosling to his nest,
------Lo, there, all summer joy and merriment is gone!
He then goes into great detail about a Lithuanian wedding feast, about the behaviours — good and bad — by various people, and finally sermonizes about how the peasants (the boors) should behave.
from Autumn Wealth
Of course, there is no lack of faithful Christians, too.
Most of Lithuanians are men of good character;
They love their families, obey the will of God.
Each day live saintly lives, steer clear of all misdeeds,
And rule their modest homes with kind parental care.
Take men like Selmas, he is worthy of good praise.
A boor nay, not a lord — but a fair-minded boor.
His house is simple, just like any other boor's;
His food each day is plain, of meager seasoning;
He only drinks root beer or water from a brook;
He wears but homespun, three heald woven, linen garb,
Or, in the winter time, a worn-out sheepskin coat.
It's not through penury he lives so modestly,
But to pay up the taxes to the government,
And then to render to the school and church what's due.
Of course, you know full well the hardships of these times,
How we are forced to live on beet soup and dry crusts.
Therefore is it not good that Selmas, a plain boor,
Discreetly manages to save a little bit?
Besides, one does not have to tell how much he saves,
Nor to disclose the place where he his savings keeps.
In case you plan to visit Selmas' modest home,
Well, you will find it clean, and restful as a church.
His table's like the holy altar, neatly set,
And on it rest many selected sacred books,
So that, when all the daily doings have been done,
Himself, or even his enlightened family,
May read the Word of God, or sing the holy hymns,
And ease the miseries of this oppressive life.
Entry written by D.S. Martin. He is the author of six poetry collections including Angelicus (2021, Poiema/Cascade), plus three anthologies — available through Wipf & Stock. His new book The Role of the Moon, inspired by the Metaphysical Poets, is now available from Paraclete Press.
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