Classic and Contemporary Poetry
ROMANCE, by MAXWELL STRUTHERS BURT Poet's Biography First Line: You were made of dew and light Last Line: O life! O woman! It is I! Alternate Author Name(s): Burt, Struthers Subject(s): Love; Man-woman Relationships; Nature; Male-female Relations | ||||||||
I YOU were made of dew and light; You were made of sun and sky; Near a thyme-delightful height, When the clouds were riding high And the mists were all unfurled In the morning of the world. On a temple-pearléd hill Where the bees wove drowsy hum, You lay and dreamed your fill Of the ages yet to come. And a sly Pan crept and peered; And a sly Pan wept and feared; For he knew no age could hold You forever in its fold Till time with centuries fraught Found the lover that you sought. II You were made of storm and rains; You were made of mist and spray; Out of bitter striving pains In the battle-haunted gray, Where the fir and sea-scud meet At the northern ocean's feet. In the shadow of an oak When the winds were holding mirth, Life came to you and spoke Of a sorrow-gladdened earth; For a Viking found you fair, For a Viking kissed you there; And, though glory swept your face, Yet you fled from his embrace, Trembling, wept within the wood; Pale with thought of motherhood. III You were made from breath of fern, From the spell of mossgrown shades, 'Neath a crystal lily's urn, In the mystic silver glades, Where, between the beech tree boles, Trod the deer on velvet soles. Near a still enchanted pool Threads of sunlight webbed your hair You lay and drank the cool Of the flower-haunted air; And a knight came riding by; And a knight remained to sigh; For your beauty made him love You, whose heart no man could move. So he sang full mournfully Of "La Belle Dame Sans Merci." IV You were made of springtime nights; Of the dear earth-smelling winds; Of perfumes and delights That stir mysterious blinds, In that wonder-working hour When first blooms the crocus-flower. By a window dark you knelt Where the night wind stirred your hair, And the breathing presence felt Of a love that waited there. And I groped and found you, sweet, And I kissed your hands and feet, Till your heart, awaiting me, From the mist-dim ages free Leapt at my broken cry O life! O woman! It is I! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...MISERY AND SPLENDOR by ROBERT HASS THE APPLE TREES AT OLEMA by ROBERT HASS DOUBLE SONNET by ANTHONY HECHT CONDITIONS XXI by ESSEX HEMPHILL CALIFORNIA SORROW: MOUNTAIN VIEW by MARY KINZIE SUPERBIA: A TRIUMPH WITH NO TRAIN by MARY KINZIE COUNSEL TO UNREASON by LEONIE ADAMS TWENTY QUESTIONS by DAVID LEHMAN AMENDS by MAXWELL STRUTHERS BURT |
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