I taught myself to live simply and wisely, <br />to look at the sky and pray to God, <br />and to wander long before evening <br />to tire my superfluous worries. <br />When the burdocks rustle in the ravine <br />and the yellow-red rowanberry cluster droops <br />I compose happy verses <br />about life's decay, decay and beauty. <br />I come back. The fluffy cat <br />licks my palm, purrs so sweetly <br />and the fire flares bright <br />on the saw-mill turret by the lake. <br />Only the cry of a stork landing on the roof <br />occasionally breaks the silence. <br />If you knock on my door <br />I may not even hear.<br /><br />Anna Akhmatova<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-taught-myself-to-live-simply/
