he used 97 words to say "I love you" 32.333 times, you're taking away 42, so he would also have to say "I love you" eighteen and a third times
But then, the poem will be 124 words (by changing "thirty two" to "eighteen"), so we will have to change 125 to 124. Then, he will be able to say "I love you" an exactly 18 times. So now we are 3 words shorter (by removing "and a third"). So it comes 121. With 121 words, he will be able to say "I love you" exactly 17 times. So, there you go. Change "one sixty seven" to "one twenty one", and "thirty two and a third times" to "seventeen times".
It's actually "thirty-two" which, by the rules established in the poem, counts as one word only. It works with 125 words by chance. The author missed an opportunity for a neat hack.
Where did he say 97 words to say I love you? I don't see that in the poem. Am I too dumb to see what is happening!???
> so I slowly whisper I love you
> thirty-two and a third times.
"I love you" is 3 words.
3 * 32.333333 = 97
Don't ever let a poet see this comment.
> Don't ever let a poet see this comment
Why?
they don't sound the same.
My guess is that sixty-seven has four syllables, twenty-five has three.
In the first verse, there doesn't seem to be any pattern to the lengths (in syllables) of the lines; 10, 7, 8, 8, 12, 8. I'm not sure the meter would really be damaged that much by reducing the last line by one syllable.
It's likely less about meter than flow.
Sixty-seven has a completely different feeling than twenty-five.