Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, CASTLES IN THE AIR, by WILLIAM J. LAMPTON


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

CASTLES IN THE AIR, by                    
First Line: I builded a castle in the air
Last Line: And the whole darn thing fell down.
Subject(s): Buildings & Builders; Castles; Crowns; Stones; Temples; Granite; Rocks; Mosques


I BUILDED a castle in the air,
A vast and magnificent pile
As the splendid temples of Karnak were
By the thirsty shores of the Nile.

Its glittering towers emblazoned the blue,
Its walls were of burnished gold,
Its base from the caverns of ocean grew
Where pearls lay asleep in the cold.

Its windows were jewels whose dazzling gleam
Flashed back to the sun and the stars,
Like the eyes of a god in a Brahmin's dream
Of the land of the deodars.

It stood as the work of a builder, alone,
Whose wonderful genius played
The music of heaven in mortar and stone
With the tools of his earthly trade.

I builded a castle in the air,
From the base to its turret crown;
I stretched forth my hand to touch it there,
And the whole darn thing fell down.





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