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While lying on my bed, with all my limbs relaxed in deepest slumber, |
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I seemed to be filled with greater joy than I had ever felt before. |
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I was standing alone in verdant grass |
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In a meadow shielded from the rays of the sun |
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by shadows cast by newly foiled trees. I went along singing in this new springtime. |
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Then I laid me down in a spot where the verdure was softest. |
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But a hidden serpent came |
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upon me, as I lay stretched |
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on the grass, and pierced me. |
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The bite of the sharp fang seemed to burn me. |
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The viper drunk much of my blood, |
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and I felt like it drew forth my soul. |
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when it left, the day lost its brightness, |
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and a thick shadow covered all over, |
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and as the serpent crawled away, the sky grew lower |
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it dragged in its course the masses of black clouds. |
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The heavens became darker and darker, and I thought that the |
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sun had suddenly withdrawn and night had surely returned. |
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Flashes of lightning spread swiftly along the skies, |
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and crashing thunder appalled the earth. |
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I felt that the force of venom |
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was seeking to reach my heart, |
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expecting death at any moment, |
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I thought that the hour of my doom had arrived, |
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I was struck with terror, my inert body was convulsed with horror, |
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and so my deep slumber was suddenly broken. |
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I was awake but still alarmed by the things I had seen, |
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there was no wound so I began to feel safe, and I laughed. |
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fully awake, I raised my drowsy head, |
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and as soon as I saw the light of the new-risen sun I forgot everything. |
