Thistledown

Harold Monro 1879 (Brussels) – 1932



This might have been a place for sleep,
But, as from that small hollow there
Hosts of bright thistledown begin
Their dazzling journey through the air,
An idle man can only stare.

They grip their withered edge of stalk
In brief excitement for the wind;
They hold a breathless final talk,
And when their filmy cables part
One almost hears a little cry.

Some cling together while they wait,
And droop and gaze and hesitate,
But others leap along the sky,
Or circle round and calmly choose
The gust they know they ought to use;

While some in loving pairs will glide,
Or watch the others as they pass,
Or rest on flowers in the grass,
Or circle through the shining day
Like silvery butterflies at play.

Some catch themselves to every mound,
Then lingeringly and slowly move
As if they knew the precious ground
Were opening for their fertile love:
They almost try to dig, they need
So much to plant their thistle-seed.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

49 sec read
75

Quick analysis:

Scheme XAXAA BXBXC DDCXX XEEFF GXGXHH
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 895
Words 166
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 5, 5, 5, 5, 6

Harold Monro

Harold Edward Monro was a British poet, the proprietor of the Poetry Bookshop in London which helped many famous poets bring their work before the public. more…

All Harold Monro poems | Harold Monro Books

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