Of old, on her terrace at evening

Christopher John Brennan 1870 (Haymarket, New South Wales) – 1932 (Lewisham, New South Wales)



Of old, on her terrace at evening
— not here — in some long-gone kingdom
oh, folded close to her breast!
Our gaze dwelt wide on the blackness
(was it trees? or a shadowy passion
the pain of an old-world longing
that it sobb'd, that it swell'd, that it shrank?)
— the gloom of the forest
blurr'd soft on the skirt of the night-skies
that shut in our lonely world.
Not here — in some long-gone world...
Close-lock'd in that passionate arm-clasp
no word did we utter, we stirr'd not:
the silence of Death, or of Love.
Only, round and over us,
that tearless infinite yearning,
and the Night with her spread wings rustling,
folding us with the stars.
Not here - in some long-gone kingdom
of old, on her terrace at evening,
oh, folded close to her heart!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

44 sec read
111

Quick analysis:

Scheme AbcdeafghiijkldaambAn
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 764
Words 142
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 21

Christopher John Brennan

Christopher John Brennan was an Australian poet, scholar and literary critic. more…

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