My long two-pointed ladder's sticking through a tree Toward heaven still. And there's a barrel that I didn't fill Beside it, and there may be two or three Apples I didn't pick upon some bough. But I am done with apple-picking now.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker reflects on an unfinished ladder, an unfilled barrel, and missed apples, concluding that the apple‑picking is over, symbolizing acceptance of unfinished tasks.
- In plain terms
- The work is done, even if some things remain undone.
- What can you take from it?
- Accept that some goals will stay incomplete.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What unfinished tasks do you still hold onto?
- How does acceptance change your outlook?
Another view
The literal imagery may distract from the broader meaning.
More from Robert Frost
To warm the frozen swamp as best it could With the slow smokeless burning of decay.
Permalink to quote #72 Were he not gone, The woodchuck could say whether it's like his Long sleep, as I describe its coming on, Or just some human sleep.
Permalink to quote #74 There was never a sound beside the wood but one, And that was my long scythe whispering to the ground.
Permalink to quote #71
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