The Greater Cats Poem by Victoria Sackville-West

The Greater Cats

Rating: 2.8


The greater cats with golden eyes
Stare out between the bars.
Deserts are there, and the different skies,
And night with different stars.
They prowl the aromatic hill,
And mate as fiercely as they kill,
To roam, to live, to drink their fill;
But this beyond their wit know I:
Man loves a little, and for long shall die.

Their kind across the desert range
Where tulips spring from stones,
Not knowing they will suffer change
Or vultures pick their bones.
Their strength's eternal in their sight,
They overtake the deer in flight,
And in their arrogance they smite;
But I am sage, if they are strong:
Man's love is transient as his death is long.

Yet oh what powers to deceive!
My wit is turned to faith,
And at this moment I believe
In love, and scout at death.
I came from nowhere, and shall be
Strong, steadfast, swift, eternally:
I am a lion, a stone, a tree,
And as the Polar star in me
Is fixed my constant heart on thee.
Ah, may I stay forever blind
With lions, tigers, leopards, and their kind.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Susan Williams 02 February 2018

Finally, a poem by this poet that sends chills down my spine- -the power, the theme, the images, all come together into an experience that will stay in my mind. Awesome write! Excellent and onto my fav list so I shall read it over and over!

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Bella Forrest 19 March 2012

This is what I love about Poetry.....once in awhile, a poem like this.

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