“OH, THE BURDEN, THE BURDEN OF LOVE UNGIVEN”
Reading edition
Oh, the burden, the burden of love ungiven, The weight of laughter unshed, Oh, heavy caresses, unblown tendernesses, Oh, love-words unsung and unsaid. Oh, the burden, the burden of love unspoken, The cramp of silence close-furled, To lips that would utter, to hands that would scatter Love’s seed on the paths of the world. Oh, the heavy burden of love ungiven: My breast doth this burden bear; Deep in my bosom the unblown blossom— My world-love that withers there. Grace Fallow Norton