Kindred Hearts

Felicia Dorothea Hemans 1793 (Liverpool, Lancashire) – 1835 (Dublin, County Dublin)



OH! ask not, hope thou not too much
  Of sympathy below;
Few are the hearts whence one same touch
  Bids the sweet fountains flow:
Few-and by still conflicting powers
  Forbidden here to meet-
Such ties would make this life of ours
  Too fair for aught so fleet.
It may be that thy brother's eye
  Sees not as thine, which turns
In such deep reverence to the sky,
  Where the rich sunset burns:
It may be, that the breath of spring,
  Born amidst violets lone,
A rapture o'er thy soul can bring
  A dream, to his unknown.

The tune that speaks of other times-
  A sorrowful delight!
The melody of distant chimes,
  The sound of waves by night,
The wind that, with so many a tone,
  Some chord within can thrill,-
These may have language all thine own,
  To him a mystery still.

Yet scorn thou not, for this, the true
  And steadfast love of years;
The kindly, that from childhood grew,
  The faithful to thy tears!
If there be one that o'er the dead
  Hath in thy grief borne part,
And watch'd through sickness by thy bed,-
  Call his a kindred heart!

But for those bonds all perfect made,
  Wherein bright spirits blend,
Like sister flowers of one sweet shade,
  With the same breeze that bend,
For that full bliss of thought allied,
  Never to mortals given,-
Oh! lay thy lovely dreams aside,
  Or lift them unto Heaven.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:14 min read
118

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCDCDEFEFGHGH IJIJHKHK LXLXMNMN OPOPQRQR
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,291
Words 243
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 16, 8, 8, 8

Felicia Dorothea Hemans

Felicia Dorothea Hemans was an English poet. Two of her opening lines, "The boy stood on the burning deck" and "The stately homes of England", have acquired classic status. more…

All Felicia Dorothea Hemans poems | Felicia Dorothea Hemans Books

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