"A Love Song" by William Carlos Williams
What have I to say to you
When we shall meet?
Yet
I lie here thinking of you.
The stain of love
Is upon the world.
Yellow, yellow, yellow,
It eats into the leaves,
Smears with saffron
The
horned branches that lean
Heavily
Against a smooth purple sky.
There is no light
Only a honey-thick stain
That drips from leaf to leaf
And limb to limb
Spoiling the colours
Of
the whole world.
I am alone.
The weight of love
Has buoyed me up
Till my head
Knocks against the sky.
See me!
My hair is dripping with nectar
Starlings carry it
On their black wings.
See, at last
My arms and
my hands
Are lying idle.
How can I tell
If I shall ever love you again
As I do now?
(First version 1915) - from "Poems 1916"
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