Whispering in Wattle -Boughs
by Adam Lindsay Gordon
OH, gaily sings the bird! and the wattle-boughs are stirred
And rustled by the scented breath of Spring;
Oh, the dreary wistful longing! Oh, the faces that are thronging!
Oh, the voices that are vaguely whispering!
Oh, tell me, father mine, ere the good ship crossed the brine,
On the gangway one mute handgrip we exchanged,
Do you, past the grave, employ, for your stubborn reckless boy,
Those petitions that in life were ne’er estranged?
Oh, tell me, sister dear—parting word and parting tear
Never passed between us: let me bear the blame—
Are you living, girl, or dead? bitter tears since then I’ve shed
For the lips that lisped with mine a mother’s name.
Oh, tell me, ancient friend, ever ready to defend
In our boyhood, at the base of life’s long hill,
Are you waking yet or sleeping? Have you left this vale of weeping,
Or do you, like your comrade, linger still?
Oh, whisper, buried love, is there rest and peace above?—
There is little hope or comfort here below;
On your sweet face lies the mould, and your bed is strait and cold—
Near the harbour where the sea-tides ebb and flow.
All silent—they are dumb—and the breezes go and come
With an apathy that mocks at man’s distress;
Laugh, scoffer, while you may! I could bow me down and pray
For an answer that might stay my bitterness.
Oh, harshly screams the bird, and the wattle-bloom is stirred;
There’s a sullen weird-like whisper in the bough:
‘Aye, kneel and pray and weep, but HIS BELOVED SLEEP
CAN NEVER BE DISTURBED BY SUCH AS THOU!’
A few random poems:
- Омар Хайям о Боге и религии: Рубаи, стихи Хайяма про Бога – Poetry Monster
- Николай Глазков – Была зима
- Hannibal by Robert Frost
- An Eccho by William Alexander
- It Takes a While to Disappear by Ralph Angel
- Legacy by Vinko Kalinić
- To Autumn poem – John Keats poems
- Morning Coffee
- An Address to the Rev. George Gilfillan by William Topaz McGonagall
- Константин Бальмонт – Нам нравятся поэты
- Greece Madum…! by Perugu Ramakrishna
- Advice To A Girl by Sara Teasdale
- Алексей Толстой – Ты любишь в нем лишь первую любовь
- Jerusalem Delivered – Book 02 – part 05 by Torquato Tasso
- Владимир Маяковский – Вот что говорил Ленин на съезде политпросветов (Главполитпросвет №385)
External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
Batty Writing – the bat’s idle chatter, thoughts, ideas and observations, all original, all fresh
Poems in English
- A Lover poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- In Excelsis poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- In A Time Of Dearth poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Granadilla poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Free Fantasia On Japanese Themes poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Flute-Priest Song For Rain poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Aliens poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- A Lover poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Autum by T.S. Hulme
- America
- The Hanging Tree
- Wolves by Mary Bone
- Wind poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- White and Green poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Vintage poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Venus Transiens poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Venetian Glass poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Two Travellers in the Place Vendome poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- To John Keats poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- To Elizabeth Ward Perkins poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
More external links (open in a new tab):
Doska or the Board – write anything
Search engines:
Yandex – the best search engine for searches in Russian (and the best overall image search engine, in any language, anywhere)
Qwant – the best search engine for searches in French, German as well as Romance and Germanic languages.
Ecosia – a search engine that supposedly… plants trees
Duckduckgo – the real alternative and a search engine that actually works. Without much censorship or partisan politics.
Yahoo– yes, it’s still around, amazingly, miraculously, incredibly, but now it seems to be powered by Bing.
Parallel Translations of Poetry
The Poetry Repository – an online library of poems, poetry, verse and poetic works
Adam Lindsay Gordon (1833 – 1870) was an Australian or British-Australian poet, horseman, police officer and politician. He is considered to be one of the first national Australian poets.