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The Three Oddest Words

by Wislawa Szymborska

Wislawa Szymborska

When I pronounce the word Future,
the first syllable already belongs to the past.

When I pronounce the word Silence,
I destroy it.

When I pronounce the word Nothing,
I make something no non-being can hold.




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I believe in the compelling power of love. I do not understand it. I believe it to be the most fragrant blossom of all this thorny existence.
• Theodore Dreiser


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