HELEN OF TROY
56 lines✦
n an ancient vase representing in bas-relief the flight ofHelen. This is the vase of LoveWhose feet would ever roveO'er land and sea;Whose hopes forever seekBright eyes, the vermeiled cheek,And ways made free. Do we not understandWhy thou didst leave thy land,Thy spouse, thy hearth?Helen of Troy, Greek artHath made our heart thy heart,Thy mirth our mirth. For Paris did appear,--Curled hair and rosy earAnd tapering hands.He spoke--the blood ran fast,He touched, and killed the past,And clove its bands. And this, I deem, is whyThe restless ages sigh,Helen, for thee.Whate'er we do or dream,Whate'er we say or seem,We would be free. We would forsake old love,And all the pain thereof,And all the care;We would find out new seas,And lands more strange than these,And flowers more fair. We would behold fresh skiesWhere summer never diesAnd amaranths spring;Lands where the halcyon hoursNest over scented bowersOn folded wing. We would be crowned with bays,And spend the long bright daysOn sea or shore;Or sit by haunted woods,And watch the deep sea's moods,And hear its roar. Beneath that ancient skyWho is not fain to flyAs men have fled?Ah! we would know reliefFrom marts of wine and beef,And oil and bread. Helen of Troy, Greek artHath made our heart thy heart,Thy love our love.For poesy, like thee,Must fly and wander freeAs the wild dove.
✦