All night long I read your testament
And I felt my soul returning
Fevered again with that high malady
The storm, the salt, the yearning
I was standing in the vestibule
Of the dark woods' deep unknowing
When by the grave at Peredelkino
I saw the candle glowing
My sister, my sister, life is calling
My sister, my sister, life is here
We look outside the window where the snow is falling
And we say to the children, what century is it out there?
The music played, I don't know what it was
It seemed to rise inside her breathing
We draped our clothes, wet from the river bank
'Cross the rafters in the ceiling
They hung like angels come to warm themselves
'Gainst the chill of starry heaven
The room dissolved into another realm
Where none refuse what earth has given
My sister, my sister, life is calling
My sister, my sister, life is here
We look outside the window where the snow is falling
And we say to the children, what century is it out there?
Well it's a power that cannot force its way
It must be felt in its diffusion
Like a wave dispersing into spray
Like the spring in its profusion
The crowd grows still, I step onto the stage
Catch the echoes from the future
I'll play the role that's written on the page
Till it becomes a second nature
My sister, my sister, life is calling
My sister, my sister, life is here
We look outside the window where the snow is falling
And we say to the children, what century is it out there?