How have I thought of thee? as flies The dove to seek her mate, Trembling lest some rude hand has made Her sweet home desolate; Thus timidly I seek in thine, The only heart that throbs with mine. How have I thought of thee? as turns The flower to meet the sun, E'en though, when clouds and storms arise, It be not shone upon: Thus, dear one, in thine eye I see The only light that beams for me. How have I thought of thee? as dreams The mariner of home, When doomed o'er many a weary waste Of waters yet to roam; Thus doth my spirit turn to thee, My guiding star o'er life's wild sea. How have I thought of thee? as kneels The Persian at the shrine Of his resplendent god, to watch His earliest glories shine; Thus doth my spirit bow to thee, My soul's own radiant deity. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...STANZAS FOR MUSIC (3) by GEORGE GORDON BYRON IDEA: TO THE READER OF THESE SONNETS, INTRODUCTION by MICHAEL DRAYTON THE FAIRY THORN; AN ULSTER BALLAD by SAMUEL FERGUSON ESCAPE AT BEDTIME by ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON FOREIGN LANDS by ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON THE END OF THE PLAY by WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY |