 | Sonnets of the Wingless Hours |  |
16
AN ELFIN SKATE.
I.
They wheeled me up the snow-cleared garden way,
And left me where the dazzling heaps were thrown;
And as I mused on winter sports once known,
Up came a tiny man to where I lay.
And left me where the dazzling heaps were thrown;
And as I mused on winter sports once known,
Up came a tiny man to where I lay.
He was six inches high; his beard was gray
As silver frost; his coat and cap were brown,
Of mouse's fur; while two wee skates hung down
From his wee belt, and gleamed in winter's ray.
As silver frost; his coat and cap were brown,
Of mouse's fur; while two wee skates hung down
From his wee belt, and gleamed in winter's ray.
He clambered up my couch, and eyed me long.
‘Show me thy skates,’ said I; ‘for once, alas!
I, too, could skate. What pixie mayst thou be?’
‘Show me thy skates,’ said I; ‘for once, alas!
I, too, could skate. What pixie mayst thou be?’
‘I am the king,’ he answered, ‘of the throng
Called Winter Elves. We live in roots, and pass
The summer months in sleep. Frost sets us free.’
Called Winter Elves. We live in roots, and pass
The summer months in sleep. Frost sets us free.’
| Sonnets of the Wingless Hours | |