It is not Always May
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 1807 (Portland) – 1882 (Cambridge)
No hay pajaros en los nidos de antano.
Spanish Proverb
The sun is bright,--the air is clear,
The darting swallows soar and sing.
And from the stately elms I hear
The bluebird prophesying Spring.
So blue you winding river flows,
It seems an outlet from the sky,
Where waiting till the west-wind blows,
The freighted clouds at anchor lie.
All things are new;--the buds, the leaves,
That gild the elm-tree's nodding crest,
And even the nest beneath the eaves;--
There are no birds in last year's nest!
All things rejoice in youth and love,
The fulness of their first delight!
And learn from the soft heavens above
The melting tenderness of night.
Maiden, that read'st this simple rhyme,
Enjoy thy youth, it will not stay;
Enjoy the fragrance of thy prime,
For oh, it is not always May!
Enjoy the Spring of Love and Youth,
To some good angel leave the rest;
For Time will teach thee soon the truth,
There are no birds in last year's nest!
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 02, 2023
- 53 sec read
- 199 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | xx xaxa bcbc dedE fgfg hihi jejE |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 965 |
Words | 173 |
Stanzas | 7 |
Stanza Lengths | 2, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
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"It is not Always May" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 13 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/18666/it-is-not-always-may>.
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