Just for a brief encounter, To meet again would mean unhappiness. And me, they put me on a freight train Going east, to the gold mines of Bodaibo. It’s all over, the noise of the wheels has stopped. No more crossties. no more raills. If only one could scream, Too bad, no more tears, The tears have dried on the ground. Don’t wait for me, it doesn’t matter And don’t get upset if things are tough for me, But remember that it wouldn’t do you any good If our paths crossed again. You won’t cry, you won’t wait for me, You won’t go see my parents But what the hell, by staying here, I’ll be mining gold for the nation. My sufferings will end, I’ll make it through everything, And they ’ll let me go no matter what, But for the moment, in the camp, I sleep in my bunk And try to forget you. Here, the forests bend with the wind. There’s nothing but snow, Well may you scream. Behind, seven thousand kilometres, A head, seven years of fog to get through.
© ?. Translation, 1975