Birthday of but a single pang
Birthday of but a single pang That there are less to come -- Afflictive is the Adjective But affluent the doom --
Emily Dickinson
Birthday of but a single pang That there are less to come -- Afflictive is the Adjective But affluent the doom --
In just a handful of words, Dickinson turns a birthday on its head. Instead of expecting cakes or presents, the speaker marks the day by a lone, sharp pain—and the only consolation is that fewer pains remain.
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