I WHEN from thee, weeping I removed, And from my land for years, I thought not to return, Beloved, With those same parting tears. I come again to hill and lea, Weeping for thee. II I clasped thine hand when standing last Upon the shore in sight. The land is green, the ship is fast, I shall be there to-night. I shall be there -- no longer we -- No more with thee! III Had I beheld thee dead and still, I might more clearly know How heart of thine could turn as chill As hearts by nature so; How change could touch the falsehood-free And changeless thee. IV But, now thy fervid looks last-seen Within my soul remain, 'T is hard to think that they have been, To be no more again -- That I shall vainly wait, ah me! A word from thee. V I could not bear to look upon That mound of funeral clay Where one sweet voice is silence -- one Ethereal brow, decay; Where all thy mortal I may see, But never thee. VI For thou art where all friends are gone Whose parting pain is o'er; And I, who love and weep alone, Where thou wilt weep no more, Weep bitterly and selfishly For me, not thee. VII I know, Beloved, thou canst not know That I endure this pain; For saints in heaven, the Scriptures show, Can never grieve again: And grief known mine, even there, would be Still shared by thee. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...LINES WRITTEN IN SWITZERLAND by THOMAS LOVELL BEDDOES MUSE IN LATE NOVEMBER by JONATHAN HENDERSON BROOKS PROOF AND DISPROOF by ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING THE HILLS OF OLD VERMONT by DANIEL LEAVENS CADY THE BUSH-SPARROW by MADISON JULIUS CAWEIN |