PRELUDES

Mother, every night outside my window lattice,
a youth sings sadly of my coolness:
“Love me, maiden, and you shall be blessed before the altar.
Love me, maiden, and you shall be blessed before the altar.”

This sweet tune has such power
That hearing it can move me to heartache and to gladness;
Tell me how these songs can impart both sadness and joy.
Tell me how these songs can impart both sadness and joy.

“Daughter, what girls like you feel
When such songs waft through their windows
Is prelude to the greatest
Poem in the world.

“Transforming a pure Virgin into the Holy Mother,
Sorrows and joys alternating within her,
And this poem is, daughter, what has begun outside your window lattice.
And this poem is, daughter, what has begun outside your window lattice.”