#you don't have to be Ukraninan to reblog this btw

[huggingtentacles]

Air-raid sirens across the country

It feels like everyone is brought out

For execution

But only one person gets shot

Usually the one at the edge

Not you today; all clear

By Victoria Amelina, translation by me, I'm elaborating on it under the cut:

I made a rough translation from Ukrainian, tried my best to make it work. Though the word order itself carries some meaning that's hard to communicate in English so I'll just explain the differences and hope you'll get the vibes.

The second and third line directly translates like this:

As if every time led to an execution

Everyone

The word order in English doesn't work like that but putting "everyone" in the end works for emphasis on Ukraninan. Everyone is brought out to get shot.

"Usually the one at the edge" doesn't convey the whole thing. There is a double meaning here. Being "At the edge" or "скраю" in Ukraninan is also synonymous with not being involved or plainly speaking, innocent.

And in the final line the rough translation would be "Today not you; all clear" putting "today" in the beginning puts emphasis on the word. In English it sounds almost cheerful to me, like yeah, congrats, it's not you today! But in Ukraninan it says something more like "It's not you today."

I just felt like conveying these differences is important.

I would also like to mention that Victoria Amelina was a really good poet, I like a lot of her works. Unfortunately there won't be more, she was killed in a Russian air strike last year.