I ASK not how thy suffering came, Or if by sin, or if by shame, Or if by Fate's capricious rulings: To my large pity all's the same. Come close and lean against a heart Eaten by pain and stung by smart; It is enough if thou hast suffered, -- Brother or sister then thou art. We will not speak of what we know, Rehearse the pang, nor count the throe, Nor ask what agony admitted Thee to the Brotherhood of Woe. But in our anguish-darkened land Let us draw close, and clasp the hand; Our whispered password holds assuagement, -- The solemn "Yea, I understand!" | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE LITTLE VAGABOND, FR. SONGS OF EXPERIENCE by WILLIAM BLAKE EARTH'S IMMORTALITIES: FAME by ROBERT BROWNING W'EN I GITS HOME by PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR MARCO BOZZARIS by FITZ-GREENE HALLECK SONNETS ON PICTURES: MARY MAGDALEN AT THE DOOR OF SIMON THE PHARISEE by DANTE GABRIEL ROSSETTI TO CONSTANTIA, SINGING (1) by PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY |