I run, I push... and look for place to hide. I know again I failed to progress. Two meters twelve. I cannot beat this height! The bar gets in the way of my success! High jump is an interesting sport, Illustrating the pro sports the best. For a brief moment, you are on top, And then down you fall very fast. But from the forbidden tree I’ll feat the fruit. I’ll catch the glory bird by the tail tonight. Let everybody else jump off their left foot. But my jumping foot Is the right, right, right. I run, I push. But it’s not getting better. Again, Into the same old bar I bumped. My coach called me up and said with anger: "You keep forgetting this ain’t no long jump!" "Your groin pull is making you flop! Stop this nonsense and Jump like the rest! Otherwise, you will not reach the top But instead you’ll go down very fast!" But no matter how angry and upset I felt, Still, to the coach I explained my plight: "They all, they all are jumping off their left, But I can only jump off my right, right, right." The run, the push. Oh, that goddamn Canadian! He tops "two-ten" and laughs at me, when flies. And I just hit that old fame "two-twelve" bar again, And the coach told me straight Into my eyes That he will drown me in the lake! It would be better off in the end! So no one would make that mistake, Jumping off of the right foot again! But I would rather just commit a suicide! I’d do something nasty to myself! But I will never switch from my wrong right To the right one, the left, left, left." The fans began, to boo, but I said "Oh well, "Let’s see who Is the last to laugh today!" Here we go: the run, the push, and now "two-twelve" Is mine, and I have put this one away! So what, If my groin made me flap? And so what, If I am limping now? But, still I have been at the top! And nobody js pushing me down! So from the forbidden tree I snatched that fruit! And caught the glory bird by the tail tonight. Let them all jump with their left foot. But my forever foot is the right, right, right!        
© Vadim Astrakhan. Translation, 2008
© Vadim Astrakhan. Performance, 2011