Ms. Margaret:tiphat:
We have a Danish (rather had) a Danish writer like Edward Lear, very famous in Denmark, his name was Halfdan Rasmussen. He wrote the same way, most often for children, but adults loved the chatter as well, with lose drawings using the crayons of children, and his books always came out in huge sizes to give room for the drawings aswell, like books that contains maps of the world. I have read lullaby´s to my children at night from his books, like I have read the fairytales of H.C. Andersen.
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Ms. Margaret :tiphat:
Remember I told you of the Danish poet and storyteller Halfdan Rasmussen. I found some info about him in the English language, in fact related to my favourite English Rock band PINK FLOYD, more specificly Roger Waters (el. bass and vocals). Here it is:
"
Halfdan Rasmussen
Roger Waters and
Halfdan Rasmussen did not know each other, but human rights issues were important to both of them.
Halfdan Rasmussen were born in Copenhagen, Denmark January 29, 1915. He was a resistance fighter during the German occupation of Denmark in W.W.II and became a well known poet often writing about social issues and human rights.
Halfdan Rasmussen was also loved for his nonsense verses written for children. Halfdan Rasmussen almost became a national-poet of Denmark. He died in 87 years old on 2nd March 2002.
In 1979 Amnesty International (Denmark) published a small book with poems about Human Rights (ISBN: 87-980852-2-0). Among the best were a small poem from
Halfdan Rasmussen titled "Ikke Bødlen". The original text of "Ikke Bødlen" is printed below. You will find that my direct English translation almost to the word matches the first verse of Each Small Candle (further down the page).
In Danish
Ikke bødlen gør mig bange.
ikke hadet og torturen,
ikke dødens riffelgange eller skyggerne på muren.
Ikke nætterne,
når smertens sidste stjerne styrter ned,
men den nådesløse verdens blinde ligegyldighed.
Each Small Candle - The lyrics
The history of the song goes back to July 22 1999 when
Roger Waters was heard to play a new acoustic song during tour-rehearsals in Milwaukee (WI). The song was finally performed on the last gig of the tour in Kemper Arena, Kansas, August 28 1999. It has been played all through the second leg of Roger Waters' US-tour in 2000 and appears on the
live album and
DVD. On the 2002 world tour the last encore is either Each Small Candle or
Flickering Flame. Each Small Candle can also be heard on the recent release from Roger Waters:
Same poem in English
Not the torturer will scare me
Nor the body's final fall
Nor the barrels of death's rifles
Nor the shadows on the wall
Nor the night when to the ground
The last dim star of pain, is held
But the blind indifference
Of a merciless unfeeling world
Lying in the burnt out shell
Of some Albanian farm
An old Babushka
Holds a crying baby in her arms
A soldier from the other side
A man of heart and pride
Breaks ranks, lays down his rifle
And kneels by her side
He binds her wounds
He gives her food
And calms the crying child
She gives him absolution then
Across the great divide
He picks his way back through the broken
China of her life
And there at the kerb
The Samaritan Serb turns..
Turns and waves.. goodbye
And each small candle
Each small candle
Lights a corner of the dark...
Lights a corner of the dark
Each small candle
Each small candle
Lights a corner of the dark
Lights a corner of the dark
Each small candle lights a corner of the dark
When the wheel of pain stops turning
And the branding iron stops burning
When the children can be children
When the desperadoes weaken
When the sea rolls into greet them
When the natural law of science
Greets the humble and the mighty
And the billion candles burning
Lights the dark side of every human mind
And each small candle
Lights a corner of the dark...
Lyrics: ©1999 Roger Waters Music Overseas Limited
Administered by Pink Floyd Music Publishers, Inc.".