Re-Verse

Reverse

the verse,

Reverse

the curse

Or worse

might come

to pass.

Pass on

the word,

Tell what

you’ve heard,

Be assured

you’ll make

it last.

Um-Drehen³⁶

Dreh um

das Buch,

Dreh um

den Fluch,³⁷

Sonst kommt

das Böse

in Versuch.³⁸

Verbreit’

das Wort,

Erzähl, 

was war,

Sei sicher,

dass es hörbar³⁹

bleibt. 

³⁶ The title « Um-Drehen » literally means « Re-Verse, » whereby I have inserted the hyphen to indicate the dual meaning.

³⁷ The second stanza in English, « Reverse / the curse, » is a word-for-word translation of the German « Dreh um / den Fluch, » which rhymes with « Buch »(book) in the first German verse.

³⁸ The third verse in German « Sonst kommt / das Böse / in Versuch, » rhymes with the first and second verses and literally means « otherwise evil will be tempted. » In the English version, on the other hand, « worse » rhymes with the first two English verses, which compensates for the slightly different take.

³⁹ The final three verses of the English translation basically maintain the original meaning of the German, whereas the rhyming words are « war » (was) and « hörbar » (audible) in German. In the English version, the rhyme is formed by « word » and heard. »