Two Lands

γηθόσυνος δ᾽ οὔρῳ πέτασ᾽ ἱστία δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς.
αὐτὰρ ὁ πηδαλίῳ ἰθύνετο τεχνηέντως
ἥμενος

HOMER

By God’s grace, I was given a boat
And for fifteen days I rowed
I knew not whether they were lands or clouds on the horizon

I was not, thank God, one of those who drowned
Nor one of those adrift on rafts, asleep
But whether my destination were real or a mirage, I did not know

Then I turned my head and saw two lands
In one direction lay lands with lofty mountains;
In the other, grassy lowlands
But alas, how distant they were
And all the more after all my rowing

I question the sun as to which way to go
I question the moon and the stars
But they do not answer