The Poem.

Robert Crawford 1959 (Bellshill)



These bones have life, and this heart knows
The poem that this hand has writ
The wind of God within it blows,
The light of God, too, shines in it.
Gather the words as sands, and cast
Them in the silence of the sphere,
The imaginary sound shall last
Till thought grows deaf to all things here
Ay! then regather, word by word,
The wonder of the mystic pen,
And ye shall hear a lonely bird
Singing within the hearts of men.
A form, a color, light and air,
'Tis like the soul — a phantasy
Which men may picture anywhere
Till God becomes a memory!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

32 sec read
106

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCDCEFGFGHAHI
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 537
Words 108
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 16

Robert Crawford

Robert Crawford FRSE FBA is a Scottish poet, scholar and critic. He is currently Professor of English at the University of St Andrews.  more…

All Robert Crawford poems | Robert Crawford Books

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    "The Poem." Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/30782/the-poem.>.

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