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Classic and Contemporary Poetry


AN END by JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY

Poet Analysis

First Line: GO AWAY FROM ME -- DO! I AM TIRED
Last Line: IN THE NEST OF THE OLD, AND A GHOST ON THE WING.
Subject(s): LOVE - LOSS OF; MAY (MONTH); SPRING;

GO away from me -- do! I am tired of you! --
That I loved you last May isn't this season, too;
And, you know, every spring there's a new bird to sing
In the nest of the old, and a ghost on the wing!

Now, don't you assert that I'm simply a flirt --
And it's babyish for you to say that I hurt,
And my words are a dart, when they're only a part
Of your own fickle nature committed to heart.

It was all a mistake, and I don't want to make
The silly thing over for your silly sake --
Though I really once may have been such a dunce
As to fancy you loved me, some faraway months.

So, go away -- do! I am tired clean through,
And you can't make me even feel sorry for you --
For, with us, every spring there's a new bird to sing
In the nest of the old, and a ghost on the wing.



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