Three And One

Ella Wheeler Wilcox 1855 (Janesville) – 1919



Sometimes she seems so helpless and mild,
  So full of sweet unreason and so weak,
  So prone to some capricious whim or freak;
Now gay, now tearful, and now anger-wild,
By her strange moods of waywardness beguiled
  And entertained, I stroke her pretty cheek,
  And soothing words of peace and comfort speak;
And love her as a father loves a child.

Sometimes when I am troubled and sore pressed
  On every side by fast advancing care,
  She rises up with such majestic air,
I deem her some Olympian goddess-guest,
Who brings my heart new courage, hope, and rest.
  In her brave eyes dwells balm for my despair,
  And then I seem, while fondly gazing there,
A loving child upon my mothers breast.

Again, when her warm veins are full of life,
  And youth’s volcanic tidal wave of fire
  Sends the swift mercury of her pulses higher,
Her beauty stirs my heart to maddening strife,
And all the tiger in my blood is rife;
  I love her with a lover’s fierce desire,
  And find in her my dream, complete, entire,
Child, Mother, Mistress – all in one word – Wife.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

57 sec read
120

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBAABBA CDDCCDDC EFFEEFFE
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,066
Words 191
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Ella Wheeler Wilcox was an American author and poet. more…

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