“I remember it so clearly —
how people, seeing me, would break off in midword.
Laughter died.”

— Wisława Szymborska

"Soliloquy for Cassandra"
Poems New and Collected (1998), No End of Fun (1967)
Context: I remember it so clearly —
how people, seeing me, would break off in midword.
Laughter died.
Lovers' hands unclasped.
Children ran to their mothers.
I didn't even know their short-lived names.
And that song about a little green leaf —
no one ever finished it near me.

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

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Wisława Szymborska photo

Wisława Szymborska92

Polish writer 1923–2012

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