Poems (Temple)/The Death of Love—Song

​
The DEATH of LOVE. SONG. 
I saw the leaves of Hope uncloseI drank their rich meridian bloom;And oh! behold her fairest rose,Stripp'd of its blush and gay perfume.
Yes! I beheld her brightest flow'r,Laid low by rude Fate's cutting wind;Speechless I view'd the tempest low'r,And mark'd the rents it left behind.
I watch'd the furtive glance of Love,On me it dwelt, or seem'd to dwell;And oh! in vain my weak heart strove,To break its sweet and 'witching spell.
​
How I have gaz'd—to madness gaz'd,On charms that others ne'er could find;No faintest trace has time eras'd,Of all that stole my passive mind.
I meet again the thrilling beam,That caus'd my bosom's peace to die;I hear once more those accents stream,That woke the wild delirious sigh.
Yes! I have seen the gradual death,Of all that Hope or Love could give;And mutely watch'd their fading breath;This have I seen! and yet I live.
  Aug. 1804.
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.