Vladimir Mayakovsky – from You

Henry Brown Fuller, Illusions, c. 1900

You came –
 determined,
 because I was large,
 because I was roaring,
 but on close inspection
 you saw a mere boy.
You seized
 and snatched away my heart
 and began
 to play with it –
like a girl with a bouncing ball.

Poi sei venuta tu,
 e t’è bastata un’ occhiata
 per vedere
 dietro quel ruggito,
 dietro quella corporatura,
 semplicemente un fanciullo.
 L’hai preso,
 hai tolto via il cuore
 e così,
ti ci sei messa a giocare,
 come una bambina con la palla.