Last Night As I Was Sleeping

Antonio Machado 1875 (Seville) – 1939 (Collioure)



Last night as I was sleeping,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that a spring was breaking
out in my heart.
I said: Along which secret aqueduct,
Oh water, are you coming to me,
water of a new life
that I have never drunk?

Last night as I was sleeping,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that I had a beehive
here inside my heart.
And the golden bees
were making white combs
and sweet honey
from my old failures.

Last night as I was sleeping,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that a fiery sun was giving
light inside my heart.
It was fiery because I felt
warmth as from a hearth,
and sun because it gave light
and brought tears to my eyes.

Last night as I slept,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that it was God I had
here inside my heart.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 03, 2023

42 sec read
441

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABacxdxx ABxCxxdx ABacxxxx xBxC
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 708
Words 140
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8, 4

Antonio Machado

Antonio Cipriano José María y Francisco de Santa Ana Machado y Ruiz, known as Antonio Machado was a Spanish poet and one of the leading figures of the Spanish literary movement known as the Generation of '98. more…

All Antonio Machado poems | Antonio Machado Books

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