 | Poems Chiefly Lyric and Elegiac |  |
46
TWO HANDS.
I.
This is her hand, her cool and fragrant hand:
Long lissome fingers, soft as the south wind;
A roseleaf palm, which Love's own kiss would find
Sweet as the rose; and many a thin blue strand
Vein'd in the white, our homage to command.
All grace of form and colour has combined
To give us this fair index of a mind
Pure as her hands, and not less nobly plann'd.
Long lissome fingers, soft as the south wind;
A roseleaf palm, which Love's own kiss would find
Sweet as the rose; and many a thin blue strand
Vein'd in the white, our homage to command.
All grace of form and colour has combined
To give us this fair index of a mind
Pure as her hands, and not less nobly plann'd.
Ah, tender toys, so slight, so flexible!
Can they too share the strenuous work of life,
And help their owner to do long and well
The duties of a woman and a wife;
Or, may they brook no labour more severe
Than just to charm the eye and soothe the ear?
Can they too share the strenuous work of life,
And help their owner to do long and well
The duties of a woman and a wife;
47
Than just to charm the eye and soothe the ear?
II.
This is her hand, her large and rugged hand:
Strong nervous fingers, stiff with homely toil,
Yet capable; for labour cannot spoil
Their native vigour, nor their swift command
Of household tools, indoors or on the land.
What if rough work must harden and must soil
Her massive palms? They are but as a foil
To that sweet face which all can understand.
Strong nervous fingers, stiff with homely toil,
Yet capable; for labour cannot spoil
Their native vigour, nor their swift command
Of household tools, indoors or on the land.
What if rough work must harden and must soil
Her massive palms? They are but as a foil
To that sweet face which all can understand.
Yes, all enjoy the beauty of her face;
But few perceive the pathos and the power
Of those broad hands, or feel that inner grace
Of which they are the symbol and the flower:
The grace of lowly help; of duty done
Unselfishly, for all—for anyone.
But few perceive the pathos and the power
Of those broad hands, or feel that inner grace
Of which they are the symbol and the flower:
The grace of lowly help; of duty done
Unselfishly, for all—for anyone.
| Poems Chiefly Lyric and Elegiac | |