The patient watches
Boris Pasternak 1890 (Moscow) – 1960 (Peredelkino)
The patient watches. Six days long
In frenzy blizzards rave relentlessly,
Roll over rooftops, roar along,
Brace, rage, and fall, collapsing senselessly.
In snowstorms Christmas is consumed.
He dreams: they came and lifted someone.
He starts: 'Whom? Me?' There was a call,
A tolling bell… Not New Year's summons?
Far, in the Kremlin, booms Ivan,
Dives, drowns, resounds in swaying motion.
He sleeps. When great, a blizzard can
Be called Pacific, as the Ocean.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 23 sec read
- 377 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABAB XCXX CCXC |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 457 |
Words | 77 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4 |
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"The patient watches" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/4549/the-patient-watches>.
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