When as a boy I set myself
to learn from the Muses,
one of them grasped me by the hand
and all that day
led me around,
to contemplate her workshop.
Little by little she showed me
the instruments of her art,
and all their diverse uses
the effect of each of them
when they’re employed in prose
or they’re employed in verses.
I marvelled, and I said:
‘And Muse, your file?’ The Goddess
said: ‘Worn out: we do without it.’
‘Shouldn’t it be repaired,’ I added, ‘if it’s done for?’
She replied: ‘It should, but it’s something we’ve no time for.’