I remember a wondrous moment: You appeared before me, Like a fleeting vision, Like a genius of pure beauty. In the languor of hopeless sad...

I remember a wondrous moment: You appeared before me, Like a fleeting vision, Like a genius of pure beauty.

In the languor of hopeless sadness, In the anxieties of noisy vanity, Your gentle voice rang out to me for a long time, And I dreamed of your dear features.

The years passed. The rebellious gust of storms Dispersed my former dreams, And I forgot your gentle voice, Your heavenly features.

In the wilderness, in the darkness of confinement, My days dragged on quietly, Without a deity, without inspiration, Without tears, without life, without love.

My soul awakened: And now you appeared again, Like a fleeting vision, Like a genius of pure beauty.

And the heart beats in rapture, And for it, divinity and inspiration, And life, and tears, and love, have risen again.

These are the verses of the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin.