Classic and Contemporary Poetry
THE POET'S JOURNAL: LOVE RETURNED, by BAYARD TAYLOR Poet's Biography First Line: He was a boy when first we met Last Line: And rooted in my heart of hearts! Alternate Author Name(s): Taylor, James Bayard Subject(s): Happiness; Hearts; Life; Love; Youth; Joy; Delight | ||||||||
I. HE was a boy when first we met; His eyes were mixed of dew and fire, And on his candid brow was set The sweetness of a chaste desire. But in his veins the pulses beat Of passion, waiting for its wing, As ardent veins of summer heat Throb through the innocence of spring. II. As manhood came, his stature grew, And fiercer burned his restless eyes, Until I trembled, as he drew From wedded hearts their young disguise. Like wind-fed flame his ardor rose, And brought, like flame, a stormy rain: In tumult, sweeter than repose, He tossed the souls of joy and pain III. So many years of absence change! I knew him not when he returned: His step was slow, his brow was strange His quiet eye no longer burned. When at my heart I heard his knock, No voice within his right confessed: I could not venture to unlock Its chambers to an alien guest. IV. Then, at the threshold, spent and worn With fruitless travel, down he lay: And I beheld the gleams of morn On his reviving beauty play. I knelt, and kissed his holy lips, I washed his feet with pious care; And from my life the long eclipse Drew off, and left his sunshine there. V. He burns no more with youthful fire; He melts no more in foolish tears; Serene and sweet, his eyes inspire The steady faith of balanced years. His folded wings no longer thrill, But in some peaceful flight of prayer: He nestles in my heart so still, I scarcely feel his presence there. VI. O Love, that stern probation o'er, Thy calmer blessing is secure! Thy beauteous feet shall stray no more, Thy peace and patience shall endure! The lightest wind deflowers the rose, The rainbow with the sun departs, But thou art centred in repose, And rooted in my heart of hearts! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE STUDY OF HAPPINESS by KENNETH KOCH SO MUCH HAPPINESS by NAOMI SHIHAB NYE CROWD CONDITIONS by JOHN ASHBERY I WILL NOT BE CLAIMED by MARVIN BELL THE BOOK OF THE DEAD MAN (#21): 1. ABOUT THE DEAD MAN'S HAPPINESS by MARVIN BELL BEDOUIN [LOVE] SONG by BAYARD TAYLOR NATIONAL ODE; INDEPENDENCE SQUARE, PHILADELPHIA by BAYARD TAYLOR |
|