Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

VALE by MARGUERITE WILKINSON

First Line: HER GAUNT SIERRAS EDGED WITH FIRE OR SNOW
Last Line: OF WAVES UPON HER COAST.
Subject(s): CALIFORNIA;
@3Her gaunt sierras edged with fire or snow,
Cutting the burnished sky, her steep on steep
Of tawny-breasted hills, her golden fields,
I might not hope to keep.

And I may never go again to find
The topaz glory of her mellow days,
The blessed fragrance of her sapphire nights,
And softly sing their praise.

But I shall keep her beauty to the end,
For beauty changes those who love it most,—
And through my heart the echoing rhythms beat
Of waves upon her coast.@1


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