English Poetry. Ella Wheeler Wilcox. River and Sea (We stood by the river that swept). Элла Уилкокс.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox (Элла Уилкокс)

River and Sea (We stood by the river that swept)

We stood by the river that swept
   In its glory and grandeur away;
But never a pulse o’ me leapt,
   And you wondered at me that day.

We stood by the lake as it lay
   With its dimpled face turned to the light;
Was it strange I had nothing to say
   To so fair and enchanting a sight?

I look on your tresses of gold-
   You are fair and a thing to be loved-
Do you think I am heartless and cold
   That I look and am wholly unmoved?

One answer, dear friend, I will make
   To the questions your eyes ask of me:
“Talk not of the river or lake
   To those who have looked on the sea”

Ella Wheeler Wilcox’s other poems:

1. The Phantom Ball
2. The Giddy Girl
3. The Awakening (I love the tropics, where sun and rain)
4. The Bed
5. The Plow of God

To the dedicated English version of this website

---