Josef Vissarianovich Stalin (d. 1953), or Koba, wrote this poem in his youth:
The rose bud opens
Bluebells all around
The iris too awakens
Flowers wave in the wind.
The lark flies higher
It trills and warbles
The nightingale sings softly
And with great feeling.
I shall rip open my shirt
And bear my breast to the moon
And with outstretched hands
Worship her who showers her light on the world.
Know that he who fell on the Earth like ashes
Who was long ago enslaved
He will rise higher than the great mountains
Winged with great hope.
Let my dear land Iveria prosper
My land of Iveria
Iveria the motherland
And you, men of Georgia,
May your labors join you
To your homeland.
