some
singers
survive
still enduring though
suppressed by tyrants by mafias or
stifled by relentless censorship
some
saved for us though
saved for us though
struck down by madness by illness
suicide
some
stay fresh in
spite of crushing
success and adulationsuicide
some
stay fresh in
spite of crushing
Sappho
survives only by
strength of reputation
survives only by
strength of reputation
stripped by time by winds
shredded by invaders by looters
scattered fragments
salvaged from graves
stitched together
sufficiently to
show her lyric
strength her
surpassing originality
subtle
supple
simple