Portrait of a family

(Peter) Nicolai von Wilm

Grandfather and grandmother,

they sat in the garden arbour;

there was a silent smile on their faces,

like a sunny winter's day.

Arms intertwined,

my beloved and I rested there,

our hearts blossomed and sounded

like flower groves in May.

A little stream rippled by

with a babbling hiking song;

silently the clouds drifted in the sky,

until they disappeared from our view.

The withered foliage of the trees

rustled and scattered,

and in silence time with its soft footsteps

passed by us.

Without a word the old silent pair

gazed on the young couple.

A double mirror of life

stood before us light and true.

They looked at us and thought

of the beautiful past.

We looked at them and thought

of times long in the future.