ALL praise the Likeness by thy skill portrayed; But 'tis a fruitless task to paint for me, Who, yielding not to changes Time has made, By the habitual light of memory see Eyes unbedimmed, see bloom that cannot fade, And smiles that from their birth-place ne'er shall flee Into the land where ghosts and phantoms be; And, seeing this, own nothing in its stead. Couldst thou go back into far-distant years, Or share with me, fond thought! that inward eye, Then, and then only, Painter! could thy Art The visual powers of Nature satisfy, Which hold, whate'er to common sight appears, Their sovereign empire in a faithful heart. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...SANDHILL PEOPLE by CARL SANDBURG TO MR. S.T. COLERIDGE by ANNA LETITIA BARBAULD SEVEN TIMES SEVEN [- LONGING FOR HOME] by JEAN INGELOW MILK FOR THE CAT by HAROLD MONRO THE LIGHT THAT LIES by THOMAS MOORE MONNA INNOMINATA, A SONNET OF SONNETS: 4 by CHRISTINA GEORGINA ROSSETTI SONNET TO LIBERTY by OSCAR WILDE EMBLEMS OF LOVE: 42. AUGMENTED BY FAVOURABLE BLASTS by PHILIP AYRES |