Translation of Poem by Vladimir Mayakovsky, Владимир Маяковский, "Тучкины штучки," Clouds Take Shapes Take Shapeless

 

Владимир Маяковский
(1893-1930)                                           

                                                                    Тучкины штучки

Плыли по небу тучки.
Тучек — четыре штучки:

от первой до третьей — люди,
четвертая была верблюдик.

К ним, любопытством объятая,
по дороге пристала пятая,

от нее в небосинем лоне
разбежались за слоником слоник.

И, не знаю, спугнула шестая ли,
тучки взяли все — и растаяли.

И следом за ними, гонясь и сжирав,
солнце погналось — желтый жираф.

1917-1918

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Literary Translation/Adaptation by U.R. Bowie

 

Clouds Take Shapes Take Shapeless

 

Rain cloudlets across the sky floating.

Four cloudlets as if on pond boating:

 

The first through the third were homunculi, 

the fourth was a camel, his hump awry.

 

And then, curiosity tickling his haziness,  

A fifth cloud accosted them, bent on sheer craziness.    

 

In that fifth, through the bluest of blue sky,

ran a hippo and two hippopotami. 

 

And could be that fixth cloud

got all the rest stressed;

When the hippos took shape

all the clouds evanesced.

 

Then, scarfing up nebulous wisps for a laugh,

the sun rolled along like a yellow giraffe.

 

 

Cartoon for children based on this poem:

https://www.google.com/search?q=%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%8F%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B2%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9%2C+%22%D1%82%D1%83%D1%87%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%8B+%D1%88%D1%82%D1%83%D1%87%D0%BA%D0%B8%22&rlz=1C1UEAD_enUS1014US1014&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:d9c117b4,vid:gQgsjPjNtvY