The Little Sister



The wind knocks at the window,
And my heart is full of fear,
For I know when it is calling
That some evil thing is near.
It whispers in the chimney,
And I strike the log to flame,
Lest it come down and take me
To the land that hath no name.
For once I had a sister,
Who now am left alone,
And here we sat together,
When the wind did sigh and moan.
There came a gentle knocking
Quick and sudden at the door,
And my sister hushed my terror,
Saying, ''Tis the wind, a-stór!'
She took my arms from round her,
She kissed me, cheek and chin,
But I cried, 'Oh, little sister,
Do not let the robber in!'
She rose up from me laughing,
But her face was strange and white,
And she opened wide the window,
Looking long into the night.

And I said, 'Oh, little sister,
There is on your cheek a tear!'
''Tis but the rain,' she whispered;
But my heart was full of fear.
And I said, 'Oh, little sister,
There's a hand upon the door.'
Soft she chid me from my crying,
Saying, ''Tis the wind, a-stór.'
And turning from me smiling,
She took down the bar and chain,
But her cheek was like the lily
As she went into the rain.
And I said, 'Oh, little sister,
Will you then return no more?'
But I only heard the pushing
Of the wind upon the door.
Long I cried, 'Oh, little sister,
Will you soon come back again?'
But I only heard the beating
Of the storm upon the pane.
Now my mother sits in sorrow,
Weeping all the livelong day;
And I think she dreads the robber
Who did take her child away.
So I put up bar and shutter
When the wind goes howling by,
For I know when it comes knocking
That some evil thing is nigh.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:36 min read
70

Quick analysis:

Scheme abcbdedefgfgchfIfjfjckak FxxbFhcIcldlFhchfxclamfmfncn
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,550
Words 329
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 24, 28

Dora Sigerson Shorter

Dora Sigerson 18661918 was an Irish poet who after her marriage in 1895 wrote under the name Dora Sigerson Shorter She was born in Dublin Ireland the daughter of George Sigerson a surgeon and writer and Hester ne Varian also a writer She was a major figure of the Irish Literary Revival publishing many collections of poetry from 1893 Her friends included Katharine Tynan a noted Irish-born poet and author Rose Kavanagh and Alice Furlong writers and poets In 1895 she married Clement King Shorter an English journalist and literary critic They lived together in London until her death Source Wikipedia more…

All Dora Sigerson Shorter poems | Dora Sigerson Shorter Books

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