PART ELEVEN Ùsu Leut vo Yagada Index - Mountain Light School

Tari bari rastobari, white snow has fallen, hunters have set out,
Released their fierce hounds, and frightened a young girl.
Hey, girl, [shout:] wait, wait, wait, wait, and join the chorus!
Let‟ sing of our wonderful homeland.
From the white branch now I cut three twiglets; from the twiglets I will make three
whistles.
Looly, looly, who will break it? Looly, looly who will break it?
From a branch I make a balalaika, balalaika, serenading my sweetheart.
Looly, looly, who will break it? Looly, looly, who will break it?
The Pedlar’s Song (Песня Коробейника)
About the closest we can come today to a pedlar‟s experience is seeing the Schwan Man
enter the driveway and come inside with his or her catalogue of frozen goodies awaiting our
purchase in the truck. In my youth our farm home was visited at least once a year by the
suitcase-laden Fuller Brush Man, the kindly gray-haired Minnesota Woolen Mills Lady, who
would spread out her colorful assembly of yarns and clothing for Mother‟s inspection, the
Raleigh Man who supplied our need for spices, extracts, and ointments. In our people‟s Volga
homeland, Russian pedlars were a common and welcome sight, at least to the children, since they
enlivened the village routine for a few hours and represented contact with the outside world. One
of the most popular Russian folksongs, “Korobushka,” is great fun to sing and hear with its lively
beat and a balalaika accompaniment.
Ekh, polnym polna moya korobushka,
Yes ee cetyets ee parcha.
Pozhalei, dusha moya zaznobyshka,
Molodyets kovo plyecha.
Oh, my basket is so heavy and so full
Of the silk brocade and velvet that I must pull.
Pity my aching shoulders; but then who cares?
Please let me lower my bag and display my wares.
Vydu, vydu b roxh vysokuyu,
Tam doe nochki procizhu,
Kak zavizhu svoyu chernukuyu
Bcyo tovary razlozhu.
I often wander through the golden rye
And remain till night has darkened the sky.
The treasures of my basket will I unfold
Only to my beloved so proud, so cold.
Tsyeny sam plateel nye maly‟ye
Nye torguisya, ne skupis!
Podstavlyai ka gubki aly‟ye
Blizhye k molodtsu sadees.
Oh, don‟t haggle, the price I paid was high,
Just give me your lips, come closer and don‟t be shy.
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