Analysis of A Mother Leaving

Corneigh Hoff 1950 (Assendelft)



Now that you’ve left (and at such short notice),
I worry: did you pack all that you need?
Did you take sufficient clothing, a good coat
for these late winter days?

Now that you’ve gone (no time for long goodbyes),
I wonder: where will you sleep, where will you dream?
Are there blankets where you’re going, a soft pillow
for these late winter nights?

I see you did pack some essentials:
my love, eternal gratitude,
my friendship and my heart;
at least part of it.

Now that you’ve died (your room dark and still),
I ask myself, where will you live?
But I know the answer: you now live in me
as I once lived in you.


Scheme XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX
Poetic Form
Metre 1111011110 1101111111 11101010011 111101 111111111 11011111111 111011100110 111101 111111010 1101010 110011 11111 111111101 1111111 11101011101 111101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 625
Words 132
Sentences 7
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 16
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 117
Words per stanza (avg) 29

About this poem

I wrote this poem in 2011 on the death of a dear friend's mother

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Written on January 30, 2011

Submitted by CorneighHoff on April 13, 2023

Modified by CorneighHoff on April 13, 2023

39 sec read
7

Corneigh Hoff

Born in The Netherlands more…

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