“Like the sweet apple reddening on the topmost branch,
the topmost apple on the tip of the branch,
and the pickers forgot it,
well, no, they didn't forget, they just couldn't reach it.”

— Sappho

Stanley Lombardo translations, Frag. 69

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update Oct. 2, 2023. History

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Sappho 16

ancient Greek lyric poet -630–-570 BC

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“Like the sweet apple reddening on the topmost branch,the topmost apple on the tip of the branch,and the pickers forgot it,well, no, they didn't forget, they just couldn't reach it.”

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Sappho 16

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“Like the sweet apple reddening on the topmost branch,
the topmost apple on the tip of the branch,
and the pickers forgot it,
well, no, they didn't forget, they just couldn't reach it.”