Friday, February 6, 2009

Poetry Friday: A Love Song by William Carlos Williams

I've already broken into the bag of candy hearts. So let's get started with the love poems already, shall we?

A Love Song
by William Carlos Williams

What have I to say to you
When we shall meet?
Yet—
I lie here thinking of you.

The stain of love
Is upon the world.
Yellow, yellow, yellow,
It eats into the leaves,
Smears with saffron
The horned branches that lean
Heavily
Against a smooth purple sky.

There is no light—
Only a honey-thick stain
That drips from leaf to leaf
And limb to limb
Spoiling the colours
Of the whole world.

I am alone.
The weight of love
Has buoyed me up
Till my head
Knocks against the sky.

See me!
My hair is dripping with nectar—
Starlings carry it
On their black wings.
See, at last
My arms and my hands
Are lying idle.

How can I tell
If I shall ever love you again
As I do now?


Poetry Friday is hosted today by Elaine at Wild Rose Reader.

14 comments:

  1. That's terrifically evocative. It smacks of that severe In Love stage, what with the honey spoiling the colors of the world and the "stains" and absence of light -- that stage when intensity rules.

    I'd never read that before. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a wistful lament! Honey is the perfect image for this heavy stickiness.

    ReplyDelete
  3. *swoon*

    What a languorous, lovely, sensual poem.

    ReplyDelete
  4. "The weight of love/ Has buoyed me up/ Till my head/ Knocks against the sky." This line has me thinking how, in a long relationship, that heady feeling can rush up on you unexpected. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  5. This one's new to me, too. Very heady stuff. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh how I love him! His gift is supreme and I am feeling the love now! Thanks for pulling out that gem.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Powerful.
    The stain of love....hmmm.

    ReplyDelete
  8. That was interesting imagery. You don't usually associate yellow with love...I usually think of red, pink. Great one!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I invite you to visit my blog. you can find my last works of art at:

    www.claudiotomassini.blogspot.com

    yours Claudio Tomassini

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'm with Kelly, the yellow was an unexpected color for love. I associate yellow with loss, but maybe that's part of the point? Part of the pain of love?

    ReplyDelete
  11. I am in love with that poem! That's not one of his that I've ever read before--thanks for opening my eyes.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi friend.. Interesting post.. Do visit my blog and post your comments.. Take care mate.. Cheers!!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. See me!
    My hair is dripping with nectar—
    Starlings carry it
    On their black wings.

    OH! I am in love with this poem. Thanks, Sara.

    ReplyDelete
  14. i think the yellow isn't related so much with love but with autumn. and the author is relating the beauty of his love to the beauty of he leaves changing to yellow at autumn.

    ReplyDelete

R-E-S-P-E-C-T (or you will be deleted)

You can receive followup comments to this conversation by checking the "notify me" box below the comment window.