Ellis Parker Butler (December 5, 1869 – September 13, 1937 / Muscatine / Iowa / United States)

She plucked a blossom fair to see;
Upon my coat I let her pin it;
And thus we stood beneath the tree
A minute.

She turned her smiling face to me;
I saw a roguish sweetness in it;
I kissed her once;—it took, maybe,
A minute.

The time was paltry, you’ll agree;
It took but little to begin it;
But since my heart has not been free
A minute.