Wenn Einer Fortgeht Lyrics in English by Dota Kehr, Gisbert zu Knyphausen

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Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Wenn Einer Fortgeht by Dota Kehr from German to English.

These lyrics have verified word for word translations. Click any lyric word to see the translation and hear the pronunciation!

Verse 1

When someone leaves, they shake hands

At the train station, people smile as best they can

How often are the debts of our longing left unpaid

Already swept away by an express train

Verse 2

When someone departs, you stand between trains

And inside sits the one it all revolves around

One could arrange this 'everything' differently

With a look, a word, maybe too late

Verse 3

When someone departs, the heart travels

And it roams about somewhere all alone

It is sometimes difficult not to derail

The smartest way to talk is to remain silent

Verse 4

If one goes away, nothing can be forgotten

And every day is a page of memories

If someone goes away, you don't need to eat anything

You get full so easily from swallowing tears

Verse 5

If one is gone, there are picture postcards

And now and then a thick letter

A heavy verb is the little word "to wait"

And 'farewell' a final imperative

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Sehnsucht — Longing / Yearning

Sehnsucht is a deeply evocative German word that translates to "longing" or "yearning." It's more profound than a simple desire, often carrying a sense of wistful melancholy for something distant, lost, or unattainable.

In "Wenn Einer Fortgeht," the lyrics mention "uns'rer Sehnsucht Außenstände" (the outstanding debts of our longing), personifying this powerful emotion and suggesting that unfulfilled yearnings can be swept away like material possessions. This word beautifully captures the emotional core of departure and the feelings left behind.

This song is a step-by-step guide to the quiet misery of a train station goodbye. Dota Kehr and Gisbert zu Knyphausen sing about the awkward moment when someone leaves, and you have to force a smile: "Am Bahnhof lächelt man so gut es geht" (At the train station, you smile as best you can). The song describes the feeling of watching the person your world revolves around just sit inside the train, and thinking about all the things you could have said to change everything, but now it's too late.

The lyrics get into the physical feeling of this kind of sadness. Your heart feels like it has left with them, wandering around alone. You lose your appetite because, as the song says, "Man wird so leicht von Tränenschlucken satt" (You get full so easily from swallowing tears). The song ends with a very clever, almost nerdy observation about the words themselves: waiting is a "schweres Verbum" (a heavy verb), and "farewell" is a "Schluss-Imperativ" (a final command), a blunt and painful end to the conversation.

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Dota Kehr Wenn Einer Fortgeht Lyrics