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Classic and Contemporary Poetry
POPLARS, by EDWARD BLISS REED
First Line: The poplar is a lonely tree
Last Line: Close to each other in a row.
Subject(s): Friendship; Love; Nature; Solitude; Loneliness
First Line: The poplar is a lonely tree
Last Line: Close to each other in a row.
Subject(s): Friendship; Love; Nature; Solitude; Loneliness
The poplar is a lonely tree.
It has no branches spreading wide
Where birds may sing or squirrels hide.
It throws no shadows on the grass
Tempting the wayfarers who pass
To stop and sit there quietly.
The poplar sees each neighbour tree
Loved by the birds. The oriole
Swings from the elm its home; the bole
Of that rough oak, above, around,
Hears the woodpecker's rapid sound
As on he works industriously.
The poplar is a slender tree.
It has no boughs where children try
To climb far off into the sky.
To hold a swing it's far too weak,
Too small it is for hide-and-seek.
Friendless, forsaken it must be.
The poplar is a restless tree.
At every breeze its branches bend
And signal to the child, "Come, friend."
Its leaves forever whispering
To thrush and robin, "Stay and sing."
They pass. It quivers plaintively.
Poplars are lonely. They must grow
Close to each other in a row.
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