I had a guinea golden

Emily Dickinson 1830 (Amherst) – 1886 (Amherst)



I had a guinea golden—
I lost it in the sand—
And tho' the sum was simple
And pounds were in the land—
Still, had it such a value
Unto my frugal eye—
That when I could not find it—
I sat me down to sigh.

I had a crimson Robin—
Who sang full many a day
But when the woods were painted,
He, too, did fly away—

Time brought me other Robins—
Their ballads were the same—
Still, for my missing Troubador
I kept the "house at hame."

I had a star in heaven—
One "Pleiad" was its name—
And when I was not heeding,
It wandered from the same.
And tho' the skies are crowded—
And all the night ashine—
I do not care about it—
Since none of them are mine.

My story has a moral—
I have a missing friend—
"Pleiad" its name, and Robin,
And guinea in the sand.
And when this mournful ditty
Accompanied with tear—
Shall meet the eye of traitor
In country far from here—
Grant that repentance solemn
May seize upon his mind—
And he no consolation
Beneath the sun may find.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 22, 2023

57 sec read
207

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCBXDED AFGF XHIH AHXHGAEX CXABXIIIXJAJ
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 965
Words 194
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 8, 4, 4, 8, 12

Emily Dickinson

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet. more…

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