My parents carried light with them, for they
Lived in days when people made their own
Or did without. The lantern’s frosty ray,
When Dad came late form milking, always shone
As it a star were coming home to us,
And if I called a midnight, goblin-harried,
The shadows fled and night grew luminous
Before the little lamp that Mother carried.
Folk have small need for lamps and lanterns now;
Even on farms the darkness will withdraw
By swift electric magic, but somewhat
I always shall be grateful that I saw
My parent’s coming make the darkness bright
And knew them as the carriers of light.
-from The Greatest of These
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I was the one who never learned to walk
I was the one who had to be explained
Strangers inquired if I could even talk
I could, when they weren’t eying me with a pained
Commiserating glances. No one can
Hold conversation with a pitying look.
So while other children played and ran,
I was the one who hid behind a book.
And yet, I wondered why they pitied me.
My father’s arms were always strong and sure
Amy mother’s smile was always sweet to see,
And with them I was perfectly secure,
And it was many years before I know
I was the one who broke their hearts in two.
-pub unknown
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I always owned the sky; the sky was mine
From the moment I first looked up at it, and felt
All the enormous tender brilliance shine
Into my wondering heart, where is has dwelt
Unceasingly. I own uncounted millions
Of starts, though using only two or three,
And as for clouds, of course, I’ve many trillions,
And the sun is my peculiar property.
My ownership of sky does not preclude
Other from enjoying it; I’m glad to share
My glad possession of infinitude,
But any who come between us must beware,
Since, whether lighting-lashed or rainbow-lit,
The sky belongs to me, and I to it.
-From Halfway Up the Sky
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