Poem by the Norwegian poet Astrid Hjertenæs Andersen (1915-85)

Horses standing in the rain

When my mind is full of dreaming,

ever vaguer and more distant

than my thought can find the words for,

ever wilder and more torrid

than my heart can comprehend,

I want just to stand where rain falls

stand out in the rain like horses

on expanses of lush grassland

midst the mountains’ weight, as here.

Stand and feel my body sucking

all this coolness, strength and wetness

that in steady streams now trickles

down my face, my hair and hands.

Be just like the forest sucking

at the sky’s breasts like an infant.

Be like grassland, full of sweetness,

trembling with devout desire.

Just stand in the rain like horses,

with wet flanks and leaning sideways,

letting scent of soil and moisture

strongly, sweetly fill my mind,

I just want to stand there being

let the drizzle sift down on me,

until thought that’s free from fever

follows dreams to perfect clearness

in a stillness sheer and calm.