by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
When winter winds are piercing chill,
And through the hawthorn blows the gale,
With solemn feet I tread the hill,
That overbrows the lonely vale.
O'er the bare upland, and away
Through the long reach of desert woods,
The embracing sunbeams chastely play,
And gladden these deep solitudes.
Where, twisted round the barren oak,
The summer vine in beauty clung,
And summer winds the stillness broke,
The crystal icicle is hung.
Where, from their frozen urns, mute springs
Pour out the river's gradual tide,
Shrilly the skater's iron rings,
And voices fill the woodland side.
Alas! how changed from the fair scene,
When birds sang out their mellow lay,
And winds were soft, and woods were green,
And the song ceased not with the day!
But still wild music is abroad,
Pale, desert woods! within your crowd;
And gathering winds, in hoarse accord,
Amid the vocal reeds pipe loud.
Chill airs and wintry winds! my ear
Has grown familiar with your song;
I hear it in the opening year,
I listen, and it cheers me long.
When winter winds are piercing chill,
And through the hawthorn blows the gale,
With solemn feet I tread the hill,
That overbrows the lonely vale.
Through the long reach of desert woods,
The embracing sunbeams chastely play,
And gladden these deep solitudes.
Where, twisted round the barren oak,
The summer vine in beauty clung,
And summer winds the stillness broke,
The crystal icicle is hung.
Where, from their frozen urns, mute springs
Pour out the river's gradual tide,
Shrilly the skater's iron rings,
And voices fill the woodland side.
Alas! how changed from the fair scene,
When birds sang out their mellow lay,
And winds were soft, and woods were green,
And the song ceased not with the day!
But still wild music is abroad,
Pale, desert woods! within your crowd;
And gathering winds, in hoarse accord,
Amid the vocal reeds pipe loud.
Chill airs and wintry winds! my ear
Has grown familiar with your song;
I hear it in the opening year,
I listen, and it cheers me long.
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| (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) |
I'm late, as usual...beautiful post my friend. I hope you have a lovely weekend. Belated Merry Christmas.
ReplyDeleteThere is something elegant and beautiful about words well-crafted to evoke pictures and emotions !
ReplyDeleteThank you for another memorable post !
Be safe , well and warm , my friend...
What a pretty picture and evocative poem. I have rediscovered a love of poetry in the past couple years and have been buying books. I would like to have a few poetry lovers come to my home and read favorite poems to each other. When the world is healthy again.
ReplyDeleteI love that idea of a poetry circle. I'd join in!
DeleteThat was beautiful. Very timely. I have a book of old poems and his are in it. Never tire of them.
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas and a Happy New Year! :)
Love this. So beautifully written, and that picture really sets the stage for it. Wonderful.
ReplyDelete