a letter to myself, on the occasion of the full moon in the month of May 2019 A.D.

I want to hurry to witness the pastel colours of a (sky at the time of) sun-rise – it is now near the time in the early morning when the birds, somewhat near my bed, start chirping after their nocturnal silence – so I shall endeavour to be concise.

Reportedly, the text of a work by a Gottfried August Bürger appears in a work of the famous Ludwig van Beethoven, “Gegenliebe”, WoO. 118 no. 2 (1794-95). (according to a web-site, the Internet-address of which I provide later).

That particular work of Bürger's has a title that has been translated, by a person whose name I am not aware of, as 'Reciprocal love'. I reproduce the German text below, and afterward provide a hyperlink to a web-site where I have seen an English translation – the same web-site above-mentioned.

Wüßt' ich, wüßt' ich, daß du mich Lieb und wert ein bißchen hieltest, Und von dem, was ich für dich, Nur ein Hundertteilchen fühltest;

Daß dein Dank hübsch meinem Gruß' Halben Wegs entgegen käme, Und dein Mund den Wechselkuß Gerne gäb' und wiedernähme:

Dann, o Himmel, außer sich, Würde ganz mein Herz zerlodern! Leib und Leben könnt' ich dich Nicht vergebens lassen fodern! —

Gegengunst erhöhet Gunst, Liebe nähret Gegenliebe, Und entflammt zu Feuersbrunst, Was ein Aschenfünkchen bliebe.

I saw the afore-mentioned English transation at: 'Love given, love returned...' in 'The LiederNet Archive'. http://www.lieder.net/get_text.html?TextId=33245

The translator of that particular 2007 translation: Bertram Kottmann; email address: BKottmann@t-online.de

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