O love, I know not what thou art, Or why thou camest to my heart, Or where is set the golden zone From which thy wondrous wings have flown. I only know that loftier thought, Diviner joy, thine advent brought; That in this world a thing more sweet, From birth to death, I ne'er shall meet. My brightest dreams of what would be When thou upon my life shouldst rise, Were as art's painted imagery To the deep fire of morning skies: Clear-eyed, I now begin to see What men have meant by Paradise. Immortal Eros, who for me Hast thrown the gates of Eden free; Who, like a herald of the sky, Hast brought this glory from on high; What can I ask thee, but that thou Wilt guide me evermore, as now; What can I promise, but that I Will follow, trusting perfectly; Sure, by this joy thine advent brings, The glitter of thy golden wings Leads upward to celestial things! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...CONTRA MORTEM: THE WATER by HAYDEN CARRUTH GETTING A WORD IN by JAMES GALVIN ON VIOLET'S WAFERS, SENT ME WHEN I WAS ILL by SIDNEY LANIER STREET-CRIES: 2. THE SHIP OF EARTH by SIDNEY LANIER |