Sorrow’s Importunity
Alfred Austin 1835 (Leeds) – 1913 (Ashford)
When Sorrow first came wailing to my door,
April rehearsed the madrigal of May;
And, as I ne'er had seen her face before,
I kept on singing, and she went her way.
When next came Sorrow, life was winged with scent
Of glistening laurel and full-blossoming bay:
I asked, but understood not, what she meant,
Offered her flowers, and she went her way.
When yet a third time Sorrow came, we met
In the ripe silence of an Autumn day:
I gave her fruit I had gathered, and she ate,
Then seemed to go unwillingly away.
When last came Sorrow, around barn and byre
Wind-carven snow, the Year's white sepulchre, lay.
``Come in,'' I said, ``and warm you by the fire.''
And there she sits, and never goes away.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 39 sec read
- 90 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABAB CBCB XBXB ABXB |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 688 |
Words | 133 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4 |
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"Sorrow’s Importunity" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 10 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/792/sorrow’s-importunity>.
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