The Grove of Eucaliptus Another Translation : Elli Sacks Music Shemer Naomi When Ima first arrived here, Ethereal and young, Our Abba built a hillside house to warm her. Now many seasons passed, A half a century’s gone, And locks that since have turned to gray adorn her. But on the Jordan’s banks It’s as unchanged and still as lush As the day that she first came, The set’s the same, that stoic hush: The grove of eucalyptus, The boat, the wooden bridge, The scent of sage and saltbrush on the water. And down the path, the toddlers Approach the Jordan’s rim. They’ll dip their toes in, stirring up the water. Now boy and girl have grown, Already they can swim, They raced all summer ‘til at last he caught her. But on the Jordan’s banks It’s as unchanged and still as lush As the day that she first came, The set’s the same, that stoic hush: The grove of eucalyptus, The boat, the wooden bridge, The scent of sage and saltbrush on the water. Beyond the Jordan, cannons Did thunder and advance, By Autumn, peace united troops and spouses. And all the babes in arms are women now and men, Upon the hill, they’ll build their own new houses. But on the Jordan’s banks It’s as unchanged and still as lush As the day that she first came, The set’s the same, that stoic hush: The grove of eucalyptus, The boat, the wooden bridge, The scent of sage and saltbrush on the water.