From “Vita Nuova” [My thoughts all tend to speak of love]
translated from the Italian by Joseph Luzzi
My thoughts all tend to speak of Love,
And are of such a varied kind,
That one believes Love rules as friend,
Another calls his power crazed,
Another brings me hope and joy,
Another makes a flood of tears.
The goal of pity’s all they share,
Quaking with fear that fills my heart.
So I don’t know which theme to choose,
And though I wish to speak, words fail.
I find myself ensnared by Love!
The only harmony of mind
Can come from one whose help I loathe,
That Lady Pity who’s my shield.
Reprinted from Vita Nuova by Dante Alighieri, translated by Joseph Luzzi. Copyright © 2024 by Joseph Luzzi. Used with permission of the publisher, Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. All rights reserved.