The Solitary by Sara Teasdale
My heart has grown rich with the passing of years, I have less need now than when I was young To share myself with every comer Or shape my thoughts into words with my tongue. It is one to me that they come or go If I have myself and the drive of my will, […]
The Silent Battle by Sara Teasdale
(In Memory of J. W. T. Jr.) HE was a soldier in that fight Where there is neither flag nor drum, And without sound of musketry The stealthy foemen come. Year in, year out, by day and night They forced him to a slow retreat, And for his gallant fight alone No fife was blown, […]
The Shrine by Sara Teasdale
There is no lord within my heart, Left silent as an empty shrine Where rose and myrtle intertwine, Within a place apart. No god is there of carven stone To watch with still approving eyes My thoughts like steady incense rise; I dream and weep alone. But if I keep my altar fair, Some morning […]
The Sea Wind by Sara Teasdale
I am a pool in a peaceful place, I greet the great sky face to face, I know the stars and the stately moon And the wind that runs with rippling shoon- But why does it always bring to me The far-off, beautiful sound of the sea? The marsh-grass weaves me a wall of green, […]
The Sanctuary by Sara Teasdale
IF I could keep my innermost Me Fearless, aloof and free Of the least breath of love or hate, And not disconsolate At the sick load of sorrow laid on men; If I could keep a sanctuary there Free even of prayer, If I could do this, then, With quiet candor as I grew more […]
The Rose by Sara Teasdale
Beneath my chamber window Pierrot was singing, singing; I heard his lute the whole night thru Until the east was red. Alas, alas Pierrot, I had no rose for flinging Save one that drank my tears for dew Before its leaves were dead. I found it in the darkness, I kissed it once and threw […]
The Rose And The Bee by Sara Teasdale
IF I were a bee and you were a rose, Would you let me in when the gray wind blows? Would you hold your petals wide apart, Would you let me in to find your heart, If you were a rose? “If I were a rose and you were a bee, You should never go […]
The River by Sara Teasdale
I came from the sunny valleys And sought for the open sea, For I thought in its gray expanses My peace would come to me. I came at last to the ocean And found it wild and black, And I cried to the windless valleys, “Be kind and take me back!” But the thirsty tide […]
The Return by Sara Teasdale
I turned the key and opened wide the door To enter my deserted room again, Where thro’ the long hot months the dust had lain. Was it not lonely when across the floor No step was heard, no sudden song that bore My whole heart upward with a joyous pain? Were not the pictures and […]
The Princess In The Tower by Sara Teasdale
The Princess sings: I am the princess up in the tower And I dream the whole day thro’ Of a knight who shall come with a silver spear And a waving plume of blue. I am the princess up in the tower, And I dream my dreams by day, But sometimes I wake, and my […]
The Poor House by Sara Teasdale
Hope went by and Peace went by And would not enter in; Youth went by and Health went by And Love that is their kin. Those within the house shed tears On their bitter bread; Some were old and some were mad, And some were sick a-bed. Gray Death saw the wretched house And even […]
The Old Maid by Sara Teasdale
I saw her in a Broadway car, The woman I might grow to be; I felt my lover look at her And then turn suddenly to me. Her hair was dull and drew no light, And yet its color was as mine; Her eyes were strangely like my eyes, Tho’ love had never made them […]
The Nights Remember by Sara Teasdale
THE days remember and the nights remember The kingly hours that once you made so great, Deep in my heart they lie, hidden in their splendor, Buried like sovereigns in their robes of state. Let them not wake again, better to lie there, Wrapped in memories, jewelled and arrayed- Many a ghostly king has waked […]
The New Moon by Sara Teasdale
DAY, you have bruised and beaten me, As rain beats down the bright, proud sea, Beaten my body, bruised my soul, Left me nothing lovely or whole- Yet I have wrested a gift from you, Day that dies in dusky blue: For suddenly over the factories I saw a moon in the cloudy seas- A […]
The Net by Sara Teasdale
I MADE you many and many a song, Yet never one told all you are- It was as though a net of words Were flung to catch a star; It was as though I curved my hand And dipped sea-water eagerly, Only to find it lost the blue Dark splendor of the sea. ————— The […]
The Mother Of A Poet by Sara Teasdale
She is too kind, I think, for mortal things, Too gentle for the gusty ways of earth; God gave to her a shy and silver mirth, And made her soul as clear And softly singing as an orchard spring’s In sheltered hollows all the sunny year- A spring that thru the leaning grass looks up […]
The Metropolitan Tower by Sara Teasdale
We walked together in the dusk To watch the tower grow dimly white, And saw it lift against the sky Its flower of amber light. You talked of half a hundred things, I kept each little word you said; And when at last the hour was full, I saw the light turn red. You did […]
The Meeting by Sara Teasdale
I’m happy, I’m happy, I saw my love to-day. He came along the crowded street, By all the ladies gay, And oh, he smiled and spoke to me Before he went his way. My throat was tight with happiness, I couldn’t say a word, My heart was beating fast, so fast I’m sure he must […]
The Love That Goes A-Begging by Sara Teasdale
Oh Loves there are that enter in, And Loves there are that wait, And Loves that sit a-weeping Whose joy will come too late. For some there be that ope their doors, And some there be that close, And Love must go a-begging, But whither, no one knows. His feet are on the thorny ways, […]
The Look by Sara Teasdale
Strephon kissed me in the Spring Robin in the fall, But Colin only looked at me And never kissed at all. Strephon’s kiss was lost in jest Robin’s lost in play, But the kiss in Colin’s eyes, Haunts me to this day. ————— The End And that’s the End of the Poem © Poetry Monster, 2021. […]
The Long Hill by Sara Teasdale
I must have passed the crest a while ago And now I am going down- Strange to have crossed the crest and not to know, But the brambles were always grabbing at the hem of my gown. All the morning I thought how proud I should be To stand there straight as a queen, Wrapped […]
The Lights Of New York by Sara Teasdale
The lightning spun your garment for the night Of silver filaments with fire shot thru, A broidery of lamps that lit for you The steadfast splendor of enduring light. The moon drifts dimly in the heaven’s height, Watching with wonder how the earth she knew That lay so long wrapped deep in dark and dew, […]
The Lighted Window by Sara Teasdale
He said: “In the winter dusk When the pavements were gleaming with rain, I walked thru a dingy street Hurried, harassed, Thinking of all my problems that never are solved. Suddenly out of the mist, a flaring gas-jet Shone from a huddled shop. I saw thru the bleary window A mass of playthings: False-faces hung […]
The Lamp by Sara Teasdale
If I can bear your love like a lamp before me, When I go down the long steep Road of Darkness, I shall not fear the everlasting shadows, Nor cry in terror. If I can find out God, then I shall find Him, If none can find Him, then I shall sleep soundly, Knowing how […]
The Kiss by Sara Teasdale
I hoped that he would love me, And he has kissed my mouth, But I am like a stricken bird That cannot reach the south. For though I know he loves me, To-night my heart is sad; His kiss was not so wonderful As all the dreams I had. ————— The End And that’s the […]
The Kind Moon by Sara Teasdale
I think the moon is very kind To take such trouble just for me. He came along with me from home To keep me company. He went as fast as I could run; I wonder how he crossed the sky? I’m sure he hasn’t legs and feet Or any wings to fly. Yet here he […]
The Inn Of Earth by Sara Teasdale
I came to the crowded Inn of Earth, And called for a cup of wine, But the Host went by with averted eye From a thirst as keen as mine. Then I sat down with weariness And asked a bit of bread, But the Host went by with averted eye And never a word he […]
The India Wharf by Sara Teasdale
Here in the velvet stillness The wide sown fields fall to the faint horizon, Sleeping in starlight. . . . A year ago we walked in the jangling city Together . . . . forgetful. One by one we crossed the avenues, Rivers of light, roaring in tumult, And came to the narrow, knotted streets. […]
The House Of Dreams by Sara Teasdale
I built a little House of Dreams, And fenced it all about, But still I heard the Wind of Truth That roared without. I laid a fire of Memories And sat before the glow, But through the chinks and round the door The wind would blow. I left the House, for all the night I […]
The Heart’s House by Sara Teasdale
My heart is but a little house With room for only three or four, And it was filled before you knocked Upon the door. I longed to bid you come within, I knew that I should love you well, But if you came the rest must go Elsewhere to dwell. For you would never be […]
The Giver by Sara Teasdale
You bound strong sandals on my feet, You gave me bread and wine, And sent me under sun and stars, For all the world was mine. Oh, take the sandals off my feet, You know not what you do; For all my world is in your arms, My sun and stars are you. ————— The […]
The Gift by Sara Teasdale
What can I give you, my lord, my lover, You who have given the world to me, Showed me the light and the joy that cover The wild sweet earth and the restless sea? All that I have are gifts of your giving – If I gave them again, you would find them old, And […]
The Flight by Sara Teasdale
Look back with longing eyes and know that I will follow, Lift me up in your love as a light wind lifts a swallow, Let our flight be far in sun or windy rain- But what if I heard my first love calling me again? Hold me on your heart as the brave sea holds […]
The Faery Forest by Sara Teasdale
The faery forest glimmered Beneath an ivory moon, The silver grasses shimmered Against a faery tune. Beneath the silken silence The crystal branches slept, And dreaming thro’ the dew-fall The cold white blossoms wept. ————— The End And that’s the End of the Poem © Poetry Monster, 2021. Poems by topic and subject. Poetry Monster — […]
The Dreams Of My Heart by Sara Teasdale
The dreams of my heart and my mind pass, Nothing stays with me long, But I have had from a child The deep solace of song; If that should ever leave me, Let me find death and stay With things whose tunes are played out and forgotten Like the rain of yesterday. ————— The End […]
The Crystal Gazer by Sara Teasdale
I shall gather myself into myself again, I shall take my scattered selves and make them one, Fusing them into a polished crystal ball Where I can see the moon and the flashing sun. I shall sit like a sibyl, hour after hour intent, Watching the future come and the present go, And the little […]
The Coin by Sara Teasdale
INTO my heart’s treasury I slipped a coin That time cannot take Nor a thief purloin,- Oh better than the minting Of a gold-crowned king Is the safe-kept memory Of a lovely thing. ————— The End And that’s the End of the Poem © Poetry Monster, 2021. Poems by topic and subject. Poetry Monster — the […]
The Cloud by Sara Teasdale
I am a cloud in the heaven’s height, The stars are lit for my delight, Tireless and changeful, swift and free, I cast my shadow on hill and sea- But why do the pines on the mountain’s crest Call to me always, “Rest, rest”? I throw my mantle over the moon And I blind the […]
The Carpenter’s Son by Sara Teasdale
The summer dawn came over-soon, The earth was like hot iron at noon In Nazareth; There fell no rain to ease the heat, And dusk drew on with tired feet And stifled breath. The shop was low and hot and square, And fresh-cut wood made sharp the air, While all day long The saw went […]
The Broken Field by Sara Teasdale
My soul is a dark ploughed field In the cold rain; My soul is a broken field Ploughed by pain. Where grass and bending flowers Were growing, The field lies broken now For another sowing. Great Sower when you tread My field again, Scatter the furrows there With better grain. ————— The End And that’s […]