‘Sperare' from Rome
combines with its ‘no'
to give us our word ‘despair'.
‘Hoffen' from German
gives us ‘hope'—
we have no love for ‘spair'.
‘Dreamer' from English
(or did it too come from there?)
we prefer for ‘one who hopes':
notwithstanding ‘no-hoper' and ‘desperado',
‘hoper' lacks irony,
and anyone who dares ‘sperado'
hears ‘No'.
douglas scotney
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/english-hope/
