Poems and Songs of Vladimir Vysotsky. In a Faraway Kingdom.

The Young Frogs.Translated by Akbar Muhammad.

Not with no purpose, the young frogs
Have been put there — to guard the house.
The weighty question they’re to solve
Is, “To let in or keep ones out?”

And if they venture to let in,
Should they let someone out?
Their question’s a lot more uphill
Than which Shakespeare asked.

They’ve argued from the early morn,
And what’s heard there are only croaks.
This weighty question will be solved
By the most wise of the young frogs.

1973.

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