Like jasmine, I tremble,
afraid of my father,
the swan of the village
covered in snow.

In the river of dreams,
I collect blue lotus
with a careless hand,
and I laugh like a bird.

We call together,
my friend and I,
we call the roses
and they come to us,

fleeing the current,
under the canopy of
my father, his white
and terrible wing.

After The Flower Duet, from the opera Lakmé, by Léo Delibes. Many thanks to my friend Jud for adding some class to this whole affair! If you’re like me, you won’t know this piece by its title, but you will recognize it starting at about 1:20. For one thing, it was used in a British Airways commercial, which inspired this great parody! (Really, you should watch it.) Back to the piece itself … It’s gorgeous, and I’m so glad I spent some time with it today. There are many, many other performances available, but if you need subtitles and studied French at some point, you might enjoy the one I chose.