You’re like a strange and very strict diet;
I’m learning to obey and be quiet.
Your love, my lover, my squire,
Is a trial by iron and fire.

You forbid me to sing and to smile,
And praying’s been banned for quite a while.
As long as we don’t separate,
You think everything’s great!

So, a stranger to everything,
I live and no longer sing.
You might just as well
Forbid me heaven and hell.

“You’re Like a Strange and Very Strict Diet,” Anna Akhmatova

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