University of Virginia Library


397

[Nay, not to thee, to nature I will tie]

Nay, not to thee, to nature I will tie
The gathered blame of every pettish mood;
And when thou frown'st, I'll frown upon the wood,
Saying, “How wide its gloomy shadows lie!”
Or, gazing straight into the day's bright eye,
Predict ere night a fatal second flood;
Or vow the poet's sullen solitude
Has changed my vision to a darksome dye.
But when thou smil'st, I will not look above,
To wood or sky; my hand I will not lay
Upon the temple of my sacred love,
To blame its living fires with base decay;
But whisper to thee, as I nearer move,
“Love, thou dost add another light to day.”