Classic Poem

I

Ah, what is love, our love, she said,
Ah, what is human love?
A fire, of earthly fuel fed,
Full fain to soar above.
With lambent flame the void it lips,
And of the impassive air
Would frame for its ambitious steps
A heaven-attaining stair.
It wrestles and it climbs — Ah me,
Go look in little space,
White ash on blackened earth will be
Sole record of its place.

II

Ah love, high love, she said and sighed,
She said, the Poet's love!
A star upon a turbid tide,
Reflected from above.
A marvel here, a glory there,
But clouds will intervene,
And garish earthly noon outglare
The purity serene.