Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, ECHOES: 5, by WILLIAM ERNEST HENLEY


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

ECHOES: 5, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: I am a reaper
Last Line: The now and the ever,
Alternate Author Name(s): Henley, W. E.
Subject(s): Death; Immortality; Dead, The


I am a Reaper.
All things with heedful hook
Silent I gather.
Pale roses touched with the spring,
Tall corn in summer,
Fruits rich with autumn, and frail winter blossoms --
Reaping, still reaping --
All things with heedful hook
Timely I gather.

I am the Sower.
All the unbodied life
Runs through my seed-sheet.
Atom with atom wed,
Each quickening the other,
Fall through my hands, ever changing, still changeless.
Ceaselessly sowing,
Life, incorruptible life,
Flows from my seed-sheet.

Maker and breaker,
I am the ebb and the flood,
Here and Hereafter.
Sped through the tangle and the coil
Of infinite nature,
Viewless and soundless I fashion all being.
Taker and giver,
I am the womb and the grave,
The Now and the Ever,





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net