I have grammar books and a learning app for the German language. That I’m studying German on my own is something most people don’t know, mostly because most days, I don’t know it myself.

As a bookworm, I know that German storytellers are a precious jewel in the literature world. The language, though, first interested me because of its sound. It involves the speaker’s tongue in particular, curious motions. Most people hear a roughness, but I hear a special kind of gentleness.

It’s Valentine’s Day, so it’s a perfect time to share Phil Collins’s German version of “You’ll be in my Heart.”

there is much gentleness, no doubt:

Du bist so klein, und doch so stark|You are so small, yet so strong.
In meinen Armen halt ich dich schön warm.|My arms will hold you, keep you nice & warm.
Von nun an sind wir unzertrennlich.|From now on, we’re inseparable.
Bin für dich hier, keine Angst.|I will be here, don’t be afraid.