We don’t know how to part - Anna Akhmatova

Original in Russian:

íÙ ÎÅ ÕÍÅÅÍ ÐÒÏÝÁÔØÓÑ,-
÷Ó£ ÂÒÏÄÉÍ ÐÌÅÞÏ Ë ÐÌÅÞÕ.
õÖÅ ÎÁÞÉÎÁÅÔ ÓÍÅÒËÁÔØÓÑ,
ôÙ ÚÁÄÕÍÞÉ×, Á Ñ ÍÏÌÞÕ.

÷ ÃÅÒËÏ×Ø ×ÏÊÄÅÍ, Õ×ÉÄÉÍ
ïÔÐÅ×ÁÎØÅ, ËÒÅÓÔÉÎÙ, ÂÒÁË,
îÅ ×ÚÇÌÑÎÕ× ÄÒÕÇ ÎÁ ÄÒÕÇÁ, ×ÙÊÄÅÍ...
ïÔÞÅÇÏ ×Ó£ Õ ÎÁÓ ÎÅ ÔÁË?

éÌÉ ÓÑÄÅÍ ÎÁ ÓÎÅÇ ÐÒÉÍÑÔÙÊ
îÁ ËÌÁÄÂÉÝÅ, ÌÅÇËÏ ×ÚÄÏÈÎÅÍ,
é ÔÙ ÐÁÌËÏÊ ÞÅÒÔÉÛØ ÐÁÌÁÔÙ,
çÄÅ ÍÙ ÂÕÄÅÍ ×ÓÅÇÄÁ ×Ä×ÏÅÍ.

íÁÒÔ 1917, ðÅÔÅÒÂÕÒÇ
~Akhmatova

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Literal Translation:

We are not able to part,
All day roaming side by side.
Night is already drawing on.
You are thoughtful and I keep silence.

We enter the church, we watch
Burial service , christening, wedlock.
We leave it without giving each other a glance
Why is it so different with us?

Or we take a place at a crushed snow at a graveyard,
Both give a light sigh,
And by stick you draw a palace,
Where we are together for ever.

(L)

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My rendering:

Roaming all day side by side,
We don’t know how to part.
The night is already falling fast,
You are thoughtful and I am silent.

We enter the church, we watch
Burial services, marriages, christenings.
We leave without meeting our eyes.
Why are we so different?

Or in a graveyard by the crushed snow,
We both sit and sigh.
And you draw a palace with your stick
Where forever we’ll abide.