Olga Ivanova
To Russian Women
She’ll not nag if there’s no bread for breakfast
But by nightfall is sure to provide,
A runaway Rolls Royce she’d stop in its tracks
And she’ll always stump up some cash.
She’s clever at handling money.
But, the fool, she’d not keep a penny.
This land over, poor Russian women
Will never give up, or give in.
Whatever life brings, she will shoulder:
Needs must, she’ll just soldier on.
Yank in her belt by yet one more notch,
After scrimping for your hair of dog.
And once the last penny is gone –
Out will come her dregs of “Obsession”.
With tough childhood now left behind,
Mad happiness fills her mind.
Note: This parodies the famous Nekrasov poem
“Russkie zhenshchiny” which praises Russian
women for their idealised virtues, here substituted
by a realistic stoicism needed to endure modern life.
“Russkie zhenshchiny” which praises Russian
women for their idealised virtues, here substituted
by a realistic stoicism needed to endure modern life.
Translated by Jenefer Coates
Page(s) 80
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