 | The poems of Thomas Bailey Aldrich |  |
ONE WOMAN
Thou listenest to us with unheeding ear;
Alike to thee our censure and our praise:
Thou hearest voices that we may not hear;
Thou livest only in thy yesterdays.
Alike to thee our censure and our praise:
Thou hearest voices that we may not hear;
Thou livest only in thy yesterdays.
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We see thee move, erect and pale and brave;
Soft words are thine, sweet deeds, and gracious will;
Yet thou art dead as any in the grave—
Only thy presence lingers with us still.
Soft words are thine, sweet deeds, and gracious will;
Yet thou art dead as any in the grave—
Only thy presence lingers with us still.
With others, joy and sorrow seem to slip
Like light and shade, and laughter kills regret;
But thou—the fugitive tremor of thy lip
Lays bare thy secret—thou canst not forget!
Like light and shade, and laughter kills regret;
But thou—the fugitive tremor of thy lip
Lays bare thy secret—thou canst not forget!
| The poems of Thomas Bailey Aldrich | |