241. [“Farewell” is on my tongue]

translated by William Roger Paton

“Farewell” is on my tongue, but I hold in the word with a wrench and still abide near thee. For I shudder at this horrid parting as at the bitter night of hell. Indeed thy light is like the daylight; but that is mute, while thou bringest me that talk, sweeter than the Sirens, on which all my soul’s hopes hang.

Credit

This poem is in the public domain. Published in Poem-a-Day on September 1, 2019, by the Academy of American Poets.

About this Poem

“241. [‘Farewell’ is on my tongue]”  was published in The Greek Anthology (W. Heinemann, 1916)