Boy, my boy, you were bold with youth and power;
Your love was like a flower that you wore upon your sleeve.
And wherever you may go there'll be a girl with eyes that glisten;
A girl to watch and listen, and a girl for you to leave.
Oh boy—God help her!
ENVY
The willow and the river
Ripple with silver speech,
And one refrain forever
They murmur each to each:
"Brook with the silver gravel,
Would that your lot were mine;
To wander free, to travel
Where greener valleys shine—
Strange ventures, fresh revealings,
And, at the end—the sea!
Brook, with your turns and wheelings,
How rich your life must be."
"Tree with the golden rustling,
Would that I were so blessed,
To cease this stumbling, jostling,
This feverish unrest.
I join the ocean's riot;
You stand song-filled—and free!
Tree, with your peace and quiet,
How rich your life must be."
The willow and the river
Ripple with silver speech,
And one refrain forever
They murmur each to each.
A BIRTHDAY
Again I come
With my handful of Song—
With my trumpery gift tricked out and made showy with rhyme.
It is Spring, and the time
When your thoughts are long;
When the blossoming world in its confident prime
Whispers and wakens imperative dreams;
When you color and start
With the airiest schemes
And the laughter of children is stirring your heart...