THE wild bee reels from bough to bough
With his furry coat and his gauzy wing.
Now in a lily-cup, and now
Setting a jacinth bell a-swing,
In his wandering;
Sit closer love: it was here I trow
I made that vow,
Swore that two lives should be like one
As long as the sea-gull loved the sea,
As long as the sunflower sought the sun,--
It shall be, I said, for eternity
'Twixt you and me!
Dear friend, those times are over and done,
Love's web is spun.
Look upward where the poplar trees
Sway and sway in the summer air,
Here in the valley never a breeze
Scatters the thistledown, but there
Great winds blow fair
From the mighty murmuring mystical seas,
And the wave-lashed leas.
Look upward where the white gull screams,
What does it see that we do not see?
Is that a star? or the lamp that gleams
On some outward voyaging argosy,--
Ah! can it be
We have lived our lives in a land of dreams!
How sad it seems.
Sweet, there is nothing left to say
But this, that love is never lost,
Keen winter stabs the breasts of May
Whose crimson roses burst his frost,
Ships tempest-tossed
Will find a harbour in some bay,
And so we may.
And there is nothing left to do
But to kiss once again, and part,
Nay, there is nothing we should rue,
I have my beauty,--you your Art,
Nay, do not start,
One world was not enough for two
Like me and you.
I don't know for you but I have to admit that it is the greatest poem that history has met It's actually my fav...And just to answer to mr.Straw, a poet can make to his poem whatever he wants...You can't tell the artist not to paint the sea pink or tell the musician to stop writing his own music or tell the poet not to write something out of the world...And for Oscar Wilde's defence I may be a 14-year-old girl and maybe I know nothing of poetry, but I know that everubody knows Wilde so you can comment on his work but not the way you did... PS I'm so sorry for any grammtical or vocabulary mistakes but I'm Greek....
Gosh, haven't read this in a long time. It still and will forever be an amazing piece. How can anyone not appreciate the beauty?
Most beautiful poem, but with great melancholy and very touching. Having read his two last lines, this is a very thought-provoking poem, but with great beauty created.5 Stars Full
'I have my beauty, - you your Art, Nay, do not start, One world was not enough for two Like me and you.' - These last four lines are everything. I also loved a poem which delivers its very best at the end. Great write from an extraordinary writer. Xx NDS
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
I found this a very romantic, but rather sad too. Wilde certainly has a style so different to poets such as Keats, Byron, even Wordsworth. The length of this poem is just right, and the first verse takes you right to the heart of his thoughts and feelings of a love that cannot be, but remembers so well their time together in the second verse, climaxing with such clarity their parting, and insignificance in the world around them. I felt very much the emotional need, and separation between two lovers. Pat Northall