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Departing Rome<br />
Andrew Wells<br />
for Pascale, a friend I happened to see at the Pantheon, Rome,<br />
when we were both about to leave for England.-<br />
Pascale, will you go down to the fountain<br />
once again, before you leave for London<br />
tonight; will you back to the Pantheon,<br />
where, as evening falls, the violins<br />
play sadly for their final time this Autumn?<br />
I recognise the tune when a woman sings<br />
goodbye, and a slow instrument begins<br />
to move. And the whole crowd carries its hum.<br />
This is now the second coffee I’ve drained;<br />
I’m also returning home very soon,<br />
though nothing’s really waiting for me there<br />
at all. Safe journey, then, forget this square<br />
until you might come back. Anything gained<br />
is lost on landing; English rain hides the moon.<br />
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