art

ONE ART

The art of losing isn’t hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster.

Lose something every day. Accept the fluster
of lost door keys, the hour badly spent.
The art of losing isn’t hard to master.

Then practice losing farther, losing faster:
places, and names, and where it was you meant
to travel. None of these will bring disaster.

I lost my mother’s watch. And look! my last, or
next-to-last, of three loved houses went.
The art of losing isn’t hard to master.

I lost two cities, lovely ones. And, vaster,
some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent.
I miss them, but it wasn’t a disaster.

– - – Even losing you (the joking voice, a gesture
I love) I shan’t have lied. It’s evident
the art of losing’s not too hard to master
though it may look like (Write it!) like disaster.
—Elizabeth Bishop

- posted 3 December 2003 in

Comments

Brett, Dec 5, 05:19 AM:
Thanks for posting this poem, man, I like it a lot. Interesting construction of rhyme and meter, a staggered repetition and a hardened aura. Lots of sharp consonants, nice imagery and metaphor. And its relevance is appreciated. I've been listening to a lot of music lately, looking at books and finding particular paragraphs I remember, reading comics a lot. Looking forward to tomorrow.
Ciam, Dec 5, 09:16 AM:
This is perhaps my favorite poem, and my favorite poet. She's amazing. I have a version of this set to music that also is great. I'll bring it tomorrow. And yes, relevant.

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