Phyllis
Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 (Dayton) – 1906
PHYLLIS, ah, Phyllis, my life is a gray day,
Few are my years, but my griefs are not few,
Ever to youth should each day be a May-day,
Warm wind and rose-breath and diamonded dew—
Phyllis, ah, Phyllis, my life is a gray day.
Oh for the sunlight that shines on a May-day!
Only the cloud hangeth over my life.
Love that should bring me youth's happiest heyday
Brings me but seasons of sorrow and strife:
Phyllis, ah, Phyllis, my life is a gray day.
Sunshine or shadow, or gold day or gray day,
Life must be lived as our destinies rule;
Leisure or labor or work day or play day—
Feasts for the famous and fun for the fool;
Phyllis, ah, Phyllis, my life is a gray day.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 39 sec read
- 23 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AbabAacacA adadA |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 661 |
Words | 131 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 10, 5 |
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"Phyllis" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/28829/phyllis>.
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