Aloof as aged kings, Wearing like them the purple, The mountains ring the mesa Crowned with a dusky light; Many a time I watched That coming-on of darkness Till stars burned through the heavens Intolerably bright. It was not long I lived there But I became a woman Under those vehement stars, For it was there I heard For the first time my spirit Forging an iron rule for me, As though with slow cold hammers Beating out word by word: "Only yourself can heal you, Only yourself can lead you, The road is heavy going And ends where no man knows; Take love when love is given, But never think to find it A sure escape from sorrow Or a complete repose." | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...CUDDLE DOON by ALEXANDER ANDERSON LINES TO WILLIAM LINLEY WHILE HE SANG A SONG TO PURCELL'S MUSIC by SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE ODE TO TRANQUILLITY by SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE W'EN I GITS HOME by PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR ODE TO THE WEST WIND by PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY |