WILD bees that rifle the mango blossom, Set free awhile from the love-god's string, Wild birds that sway in the citron branches, Drunk with the rich, red honey of spring, Fireflies weaving aërial dances In fragile rhythms of flickering gold, What do you know in your blithe, brief season Of dreams deferred and a heart grown old? But the wise winds know, as they pause to slacken The speed of their subtle, omniscient flight, Divining the magic of unblown lilies, Foretelling the stars of the unborn night. They have followed the hurrying feet of pilgrims, Tracking swift prayers to their utmost goals, They have spied on Love's old and changeless secret, And the changing sorrow of human souls. They have tarried with Death in her parleying-places, And issued the word of her high decree, Their wings have winnowed the garnered sunlight, Their lips have tasted the purple sea. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...PASSING BY by THOMAS FORD (1580-1648) THE SOCIETY UPON THE STANISLAUS by FRANCIS BRET HARTE MAHMOUD by JAMES HENRY LEIGH HUNT THE GIFT by GEORGE WILLIAM RUSSELL THE KING'S HAND by MUHAMMAD AL-MU'TAMID II |