Classic Poem

Long time and I sweet Susy known, —
A lovely child was she;
Each grace and virtue was her own, —
That could I clearly see.
I came and went, and went and came,
Like ocean's ebb and flow;
Glad was I always when I came,
Yet never sad to go.

But by and by it came to pass,
Quite other thoughts I had;
Then, when I went, I sighed, " Alas! "
And when I came, was glad.
She was my only pastime now,
My only business, too;
Whole was I, soul and body, now;
She filled me through and through.

I was as deaf as any stone,
As dumb as dumb could be;
Naught saw I, heard I; she alone
Was bird and bud to me.
No star in heaven, no sun, no moon,
Naught but my darling, shined;
On her, as on a sun at noon,
I looked my eyes quite blind.

But changing time, with silent pace,
My feelings changed again;
Yet every virtue, charm, and grace
Did still with her remain.
I came and went, and went and came,
Like ocean's ebb and flow;
'T was very pleasant when I came,
Nor painful now to go.

Ye wise ones, who investigate
With learned labor this, —
How, where, and when all creatures mate,
And why they love and kiss, —
Ye deep-read sages, ponder now
The wondrous things I tell,
And say, why, wherefore, when, and how
Such changes me befell.

I, night and day, and day and night,
Have racked my musing brain,
To bring the hidden cause to light,
But I have toiled in vain.
Love's like the wind at sea that blows; —
You hear the sound full well;
But whence it rose, and whither it goes,
No mortal man can tell.