Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, PORTRAIT AND REALITY, by HENRY VAN DYKE


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

PORTRAIT AND REALITY, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: If on the closed curtain of my sight
Last Line: Never the same, and sweeter with each change.
Alternate Author Name(s): Civis Americanus
Subject(s): Reality


IF on the closed curtain of my sight
My fancy paints thy portrait far away,
I see thee still the same, by night or day;
Crossing the crowded street, or moving bright
'Mid festal throngs, or reading by the light
Of shaded lamp some friendly poet's lay,
Or shepherding the children at their play, --
The same sweet self, and my unchanged delight.

But when I see thee near, I recognize
In every dear familiar way some strange
Perfection, and behold in April guise
The magic of thy beauty that doth range
Through many moods with infinite surprise, --
Never the same, and sweeter with each change.





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