Poems

Part 3 — THINK NOT, O LILIAS[7]

Reading edition

THINK NOT, O LILIAS[7]

Think not, O Lilias, that the love of this night will endure in the sun. Hast thou beheld fungi, white, evil, rosy-lined, poisonous, shrivel in the eyes of day?

In this wilderness of strange hearts it is not thine alone that concerns me. Many brave hearts of men are more to me than thine. The hearts of men breathe deeply. As for thy heart, it runs from me, it is quicksilver, it does not concern me greatly.

Notes in this chapter

Note 1 · “Think Not, O Lilias.” These prose lines were recalled out of a dream. They are included here because of their singular beauty.