Black Sheep Poem by Richard Francis Burton

Black Sheep

Rating: 3.0


FROM their folded mates they wander far,
Their ways seem harsh and wild:
They follow the beck of a baleful star,
Their paths are dream-beguiled.

Yet haply they sought but a wider range,
Some loftier mountain slope,
And little recked of the country strange
Beyond the gates of hope.

And haply a bell with a luring call
Summoned their feet to tread
Midst the cruel rocks, where the deep pitfall
And the lurking snare are spread.

Maybe, in spite of their tameless days
Of outcast liberty,
They ’re sick at heart for the homely ways
Where their gathered brothers be.

And oft at night, when the plains fall dark
And the hills loom large and dim,
For the shepherd’s voice they mutely hark,
And their souls go out to him.

Meanwhile, “Black sheep! black sheep!” we cry,
Safe in the inner fold;
And maybe they hear, and wonder why,
And marvel, out in the cold.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Peter J White 16 February 2009

All true poets are black sheep. Why? The soul of poetry is love and those who live in love are the real poets of this world whether they write or not. We are sometimes lonely and invariably we are misunderstood. But, like Martin Luther, 'Here we stand. We can do no other.'

0 1 Reply
Vidi Writes 18 April 2008

'And maybe they hear, and wonder why, And marvel, out in the cold' Fanda... Worth a hundred read...

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