Verses To A Child Poem by Anne Brontë

Verses To A Child

Rating: 3.3


1

O raise those eyes to me again
And smile again so joyously,
And fear not, love; it was not pain
Nor grief that drew these tears from me;
Beloved child, thou canst not tell
The thoughts that in my bosom dwell
Whene'er I look on thee!

2

Thou knowest not that a glance of thine
Can bring back long departed years
And that thy blue eyes' magic shine
Can overflow my own with tears,
And that each feature soft and fair
And every curl of golden hair,
Some sweet remembrance bears.

3

Just then thou didst recall to me
A distant long forgotten scene,
One smile, and one sweet word from thee
Dispelled the years that rolled between;
I was a little child again,
And every after joy and pain
Seemed never to have been.

4

Tall forest trees waved over me,
To hide me from the heat of day,
And by my side a child like thee
Among the summer flowerets lay.
He was thy sire, thou merry child.
Like thee he spoke, like thee he smiled,
Like thee he used to play.

5

O those were calm and happy days,
We loved each other fondly then;
But human love too soon decays,
And ours can never bloom again.
I never thought to see the day
When Florian's friendship would decay
Like those of colder men.

6

Now, Flora, thou hast but begun
To sail on life's deceitful sea,
O do not err as I have done,
For I have trusted foolishly;
The faith of every friend I loved
I never doubted till I proved
Their heart's inconstancy.

7

'Tis mournful to look back upon
Those long departed joys and cares,
But I will weep since thou alone
Art witness to my streaming tears.
This lingering love will not depart,
I cannot banish from my heart
The friend of childish years.

8

But though thy father loves me not,
Yet I shall still be loved by thee,
And though I am by him forgot,
Say wilt thou not remember me!
I will not cause thy heart to ache;
For thy regretted father's sake
I'll love and cherish thee.

Alexandrina Zenobia

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Kim Barney 17 July 2015

If this poem is by Anne Bronte, why does it have the name of Alexandrina Zenobia at the bottom? Is that the name of the person who submitted it to Poem Hunter? Even if it is, it should not appear there!

3 0 Reply
Francie Lynch 17 July 2015

This poem is a lamentable drivel.

0 3 Reply
Francie Lynch 17 July 2015

A very fine poem of lamentation.

0 0 Reply
Bri Edwards 20 March 2023

'Zenobia, Alexandrina - Oxford Reference Nov 8,2021speaker of four of Anne Brontë's poems and possibly the same character as 'Alexandria Zenobia Hybernia' in Anne's list of Gondal characters.'

0 0 Reply
Bri Edwards 20 March 2023

'Anne Brontë (January 17,1820 - May 28,1849) was an English poet and novelist. She was the youngest of the three Brontë sisters who became well-known authors, but died very young.' : (

0 0 Reply
Bri Edwards 20 March 2023

I'd like to question the poet about these lines: 'And every after joy and pain' and 'Say wilt thou not remember me! ' five stars bri : )

0 0 Reply
Edward Kofi Louis 17 July 2015

Those eyes to gain the world. Nice work.

0 1 Reply
Pranab K Chakraborty 17 July 2015

This lingering love will not depart, I cannot banish from my heart.............................. Good journey indeed!

0 0 Reply
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Anne Brontë

Anne Brontë

Thornton, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
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