O Rose, thou flower of flowers, thou fragrant wonder, Who shall describe thee in thy ruddy prime; Thy perfect fulness in the summer time; When the pale leaves blushingly part asunder And show the warm red heart lies glowing under? Thou shouldst bloom surely in some sunny clime, Untouched by blights and chilly Winter's rime, Where lightnings never flash, nor peals the thunder. And yet in happier spheres they cannot need thee So much as we do with our weight of woe; Perhaps they would not tend, perhaps not heed thee, And thou wouldst lonely and neglected grow; And He who is All-Wise, He hath decreed thee To gladden earth and cheer all hearts below. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...MOUNTAIN FARM by MALCOLM COWLEY PURSUIT OF THE WORD by ROBERT FROST DOMESDAY BOOK: FATHER WHIMSETT by EDGAR LEE MASTERS CAPUT MORTUUM by EDWIN ARLINGTON ROBINSON GOOD-BYE DOROTHY GAYLE: OVER THE MACKINAC by KAREN SWENSON HYBRIDS OF WAR: A MORALITY POEM: 1. VIETNAM by KAREN SWENSON |