An Old Woman Went Off to Sell Her Milk, and the Village Was Far from the Market

An old woman went off to sell her milk,
The village was far from the market.
The old woman grew tired and, her business done,
Lay down to doze by the very roadside.

A merry puppy came up to the old woman,
Seized her by the skirt and tore her hem.
The weather at that time was fresh.
The old woman woke up, shivering with cold.

The old woman woke up and began to look for
Her house slippers, her candle and her bed.
But, feeling the edges of her torn skirt,
She said: "Oh, mercy me, this is not I!

I'll go home, then. If I am I,
My dog will not bite me.
She will meet me, yelping, at the gate,
And if I am not I, she will tear me to pieces."

The old woman knocked at the window at first light.
The dog barked loudly in reply.
The old woman sat down, beside herself,
And said quietly: "Well, so I am not I!"

Literal translation

"The Tale of the Old Woman" by Samuil Marshak, but originally from the book "English Folk Poetry for Children"