To fall asleep like a bird. To have a wing you could stick your head under, aworld of branches suspended above the earthly world, barely glimpsed downbelow, muffled and remote. Once you begin rejection your present state, there is no knowing where you can arrive.

Italo Calvino
About This Quote

Falling asleep like a bird is a great metaphor for death. When you die you take flight from the mortal world and soar above it to your final destination. In this poem, the speaker describes a world where the sky is always open and he can soar above all earthly things. To have a wing you can stick your head under is a great metaphor for being able to see the things you love again after death.

To have a world of branches suspended above the earthly world makes it seem as though your soul will never return to earth. The speaker has no idea where he might land once he begins to reject his present state.

Source: Marcovaldo

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