He Prefers Her Earthly by Thomas Hardy

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend June 6, 2015   He Prefers Her Earthly   Thomas Hardy

This after-sunset is a sight for seeing, Cliff-heads of craggy cloud surrounding it.      —And dwell you in that glory-show? You may; for there are strange strange things in being,                Stranger than I know.   Yet if that chasm of splendour claim your presence Which glows between the ash cloud and the dun,      How changed must be your mortal mould! Changed to a firmament-riding earthless essence                From what you were of old:   All too unlike the fond and fragile creature Then known to me….Well, shall I say it plain?      I would not have you thus and there, But still would grieve on, missing you, still feature                You as the one you were.            This poem is in the public domain. About This Poem   “He Prefers Her Earthly” was published in Hardy’s book Moments of Vision and Miscellaneous Verses (Macmillan, 1917).   Thomas Hardy was born in England on June 2, 1840. His books include Wessex Poems and Other Verses (1899) and Time’s Laughingstocks (1909). Hardy died on January 11, 1928. Poetry by Hardy   Thomas Hardy: Selected Poems (Penguin Books, 1998) "The Widow’s Lament in Springtime" by William Carlos Williams "The Song of Despair" by Pablo Neruda "When You Are Old" by W. B. Yeats Poem-a-Day   Launched during National Poetry Month in 2006, Poem-a-Day features new and previously unpublished poems by contemporary poets on weekdays and classic poems on weekends. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038