While fighting for his country, he lost an arm
And was suddenly afraid;
From now on, I shall only be able to do
Things by halves
I shall reap half a harvest
I shall be able to play either the tune
Or the accompaniment on the piano
But never both parts together
I shall be able to bang with only one fist
On doors, and worst of all
I shall only be able to half hold
my love close to me
There will be things I cannot do at all
Applaud for example
At shows where everyone applauds
From that moment on, he set himself to do everything with twice as much enthusiasm
And where the arm had been torn away
A wing grew
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Note: I did not write this...I found it in a literature book at school....
Written by Nina Cassian
Translated by Roy MacGregor-Hastie
