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Ponmi ove 'l sole occide i fiori et l'erba,
o dove vince lui il ghiaccio et la neve;
ponmi ov'è 'l carro suo temprato et leve,
et ov'è chi ce 'l rende, o chi ce 'l serba;
ponmi in humil fortuna, od in superba,
al dolce aere sereno, al fosco et greve;
ponmi a la notte, al dí lungo ed al breve,
a la matura etate od a l'acerba;
ponmi in cielo, od in terra, od in abisso,
in alto poggio, in valle ima et palustre,
libero spirto, od a' suoi membri affisso;
ponmi con fama oscura, o con ilustre:
sarò qual fui, vivrò com'io son visso,
continüando il mio sospir trilustre.
Canzoniere 145
English translation
Set me where the sun burns flowers and grass,
or where he's conquered by the ice and snow:
set me beneath his temperate chariot,
where it rises or where it descends:
set me among the humble, or the proud,
in sweet calm air, or in the dark and sombre:
set me in night, in days long or short,
unripe in age, or of maturer years.
set me in heaven, on earth, or in the depths,
on a high hill, or deep in a marshy vale,
a spirit freed, or imprisoned in its limbs:
set me far from fame, or let me be known:
I'll be what I have been, live as I've lived,
continuing my fifteen years of sighs.