The Grave

John Le Gay Brereton 1871 (Sydney) – 1933



In the grey dawn I lie within my bed
Still as a frozen lake that pats no more
With murmurous delight the o'erhanging shore,
Yet grim thoughts heave obscurely in my head;
For curtains I have earthen walls, and lead
Is colder than the woollen garb I wore--
But oh! that heart of mine is still as sore
As when I did not know that I was dead.
I knew her (O my Life!) and she was fair,
And gave her beauty to the hills and sea,
The wonder of her voice to leaf and wave.
The brown earth lies between us; does she care
That since she cast the first dull clod on me
My lonely heart is aching in the grave?

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

38 sec read
20

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBAABBACDECDE
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 605
Words 126
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14

John Le Gay Brereton

John Le Gay Brereton was an Australian poet, critic and professor of English at the University of Sydney. He was the first president of the Fellowship of Australian Writers when it was formed in Sydney in 1928. more…

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