Classic and Contemporary Poetry
THE POET'S JOURNAL: AUTUMNAL DREAMS, by BAYARD TAYLOR Poet's Biography First Line: When the maple turns to crimson Last Line: In the autumns of the past! Alternate Author Name(s): Taylor, James Bayard Subject(s): Autumn; Dreams; Life; Past; Seasons; Fall; Nightmares | ||||||||
I. WHEN the maple turns to crimson And the sassafras to gold; When the gentian 's in the meadow, And the aster on the wold; When the noon is lapped in vapor, And the night is frosty-cold: II. When the chestnut-burs are opened, And the acorns drop like hail, And the drowsy air is startled With the thumping of the flail, -- With the drumming of the partridge And the whistle of the quail: III. Through the rustling woods I wander, Through the jewels of the year, From the yellow uplands calling, Seeking her that still is dear: She is near me in the autumn, She, the beautiful, is near. IV. Through the smoke of burning summer, When the weary winds are still, I can see her in the valley, I can hear her on the hill, -- In the splendor of the woodlands, In the whisper of the rill. V. For the shores of Earth and Heaven Meet, and mingle in the blue: She can wander down the glory To the places that she knew, Where the happy lovers wandered In the days when life was true. VI. So I think, when days are sweetest, And the world is wholly fair, She may sometime steal upon me Through the dimness of the air, With the cross upon her bosom And the amaranth in her hair. VII. Once to meet her, ah! to meet her, And to hold her gently fast Till I blessed her, till she blessed me, -- That were happiness, at last: That were bliss beyond our meetings In the autumns of the Past! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...VARIATIONS: 14 by CONRAD AIKEN VARIATIONS: 18 by CONRAD AIKEN LIVE IT THROUGH by DAVID IGNATOW A DREAM OF GAMES by JOSEPHINE JACOBSEN THE DREAM OF WAKING by RANDALL JARRELL APOLOGY FOR BAD DREAMS by ROBINSON JEFFERS GIVE YOUR WISH LIGHT by ROBINSON JEFFERS BEDOUIN [LOVE] SONG by BAYARD TAYLOR NATIONAL ODE; INDEPENDENCE SQUARE, PHILADELPHIA by BAYARD TAYLOR |
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