Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SONGS OF THE WIVES OF SOLOMON: VARIATIONS, by ELIZABETH DEWING KAUP


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SONGS OF THE WIVES OF SOLOMON: VARIATIONS, by                    
First Line: He says I am fair among fair women
Last Line: For an hour of that which I have not.
Alternate Author Name(s): Dewing, Elizabeth Bartol; Dewing, E. B.
Subject(s): Love; Marriage; Women; Weddings; Husbands; Wives


He says I am fair among fair women,
That the light of my eyes is more to him than the
light of the sun,
And the sheen of my hair brighter than gold.
But the sound of his voice deafens me
Because it is not yours, beloved.
He is flushed like the morning,
And shaken like water in a wind,
And the world might end and he would not know.
But I care not for his eagerness or his joy
Because they are not yours, beloved.

He tells me of the little songs I sing—
My voice in singing them—
The silver sandals with the shining clasps—
My white feet wearing them—
Nor yet forgets the finely gilded lashes—
My eyes outgleaming them.
But what matter are these things to me, beloved.
And you not knowing them?

Is it not better to be enthroned, beloved,
Than to sit forever at thy feet?
Is it not better to smile, beloved,
Than to wait forever for thine?
Is it not better to accept the sacrifice
Than to weary from carrying it to thee?
It is better, beloved,
And yet would I give an eternity of that which I have
For an hour of that which I have not.





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