 | The Ballad of Babie Bell And Other Poems |  |
43
I SAT BESIDE YOU WHILE YOU SLEPT.
I sat beside you while you slept,
And Christ! but it was woe
To see the long dark lashes rest
Upon your cheeks of snow,
To see you lie so happily,
And to think you did not know
What a weary, weary world is this,
While you were sleeping so!
And Christ! but it was woe
To see the long dark lashes rest
Upon your cheeks of snow,
To see you lie so happily,
And to think you did not know
What a weary, weary world is this,
While you were sleeping so!
You are dearer than my soul, love,
But in that hour of pain,
I wished that you might never lift
Those eyes to mine again,
Might never weep, but lie in sleep
While the long seasons roll—
I wished this, I who love you, love,
Better than my soul!
And then—I cannot tell what then,
But that I might not weep
I caught you in my arms, love,
And kissed you from your sleep.
But in that hour of pain,
I wished that you might never lift
Those eyes to mine again,
Might never weep, but lie in sleep
While the long seasons roll—
I wished this, I who love you, love,
Better than my soul!
And then—I cannot tell what then,
But that I might not weep
I caught you in my arms, love,
And kissed you from your sleep.
| The Ballad of Babie Bell And Other Poems | |