I Taught Myself to Live Simply
Anna Akhmatova 1889 (Odessa) – 1966 (Moscow)
I taught myself to live simply and wisely,
to look at the sky and pray to God,
and to wander long before evening
to tire my superfluous worries.
When the burdocks rustle in the ravine
and the yellow-red rowanberry cluster droops
I compose happy verses
about life's decay, decay and beauty.
I come back. The fluffy cat
licks my palm, purrs so sweetly
and the fire flares bright
on the saw-mill turret by the lake.
Only the cry of a stork landing on the roof
occasionally breaks the silence.
If you knock on my door
I may not even hear.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 27, 2023
- 30 sec read
- 290 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABCDEDFAGAHIJKLM |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 527 |
Words | 102 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 16 |
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"I Taught Myself to Live Simply" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 5 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/2999/i-taught-myself-to-live-simply>.
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