Du Hast Mir Schon Fragen Gestellt

You’ve already asked me questions
About 'God and the world',
And most of the time I could answer you.
But now you’ve got me off balance
With your question about death
And 'what if we don’t live anymore?'
I have to pass, I’m sorry,
No one really knows for sure,
As long as there are people on Earth.
I imagine dying
Like a big, bright door,
Through which we will one day pass.

Behind it lies the source of light,
Or maybe the sea, perhaps nothing,
Maybe a park with green benches,
But until someone returns
And teaches me something better,
I’d like to think of heaven there.
Higher than towers of clouds,
Even higher than airways go,
Jets writing their white trails
Beyond the borders of our time,
A space of weightlessness,
A good place to stay.

Far from strife, fear, and pain,
In peace and tranquility,
Because we need nothing, miss nothing.
And it’s comforting, I find,
To know those who’ve gone before us,
And those we love, to be there.
And the thought of one day
Also passing through this door, has then
Nothing threatening, it reminds us,
Every minute until then,
Like a gift, with open minds,
To experience in deep breaths.