Page:The poems of Richard Watson Gilder, Gilder, 1908.djvu/125

Rh II

O, tell me of these flowers

That bloom in heavenly bowers,

One with fiery glow,

And one as white as snow!

And tell me who is this

In Heaven's holy bliss

Who trembles and who cries

Like a mortal soul that dies!

III

These blossoms two,

Wet with heavenly dew—

The Gentle Heart is one,

And one is Beauty's own;

And the spirit here that stands,

With pale and trembling hands,

Before to-morrow's morn

Will be a child new-born,

Will be a mortal maiden

With earthly sorrows laden;

But of these shining flowers

That bloom in heavenly bowers,

To-day she still may choose

One, and one refuse.

IV

Will she pluck the crimson flower

And win Beauty's dower?

Will she choose the better part

And gain the Gentle Heart?

Awhile she weeping waits

Within those pearly gates;

Alas! the mortal maiden