"Elegy V: His Picture" by John Donne

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend July 1, 2017   Elegy V: His Picture   John Donne

Here take my picture; though I bid farewell Thine, in my heart, where my soul dwells, shall dwell. 'Tis like me now, but I dead, 'twill be more When we are shadows both, than 'twas before. When weather-beaten I come back, my hand Perhaps with rude oars torn, or sun beams tann'd, My face and breast of haircloth, and my head With care's rash sudden storms being o'erspread, My body'a sack of bones, broken within, And powder's blue stains scatter'd on my skin; If rival fools tax thee to'have lov'd a man So foul and coarse as, oh, I may seem then, This shall say what I was, and thou shalt say, "Do his hurts reach me? doth my worth decay? Or do they reach his judging mind, that he Should now love less, what he did love to see? That which in him was fair and delicate, Was but the milk which in love's childish state Did nurse it; who now is grown strong enough To feed on that, which to disus'd tastes seems tough."                  This poem is in the public domain. About This Poem   "Elegy V: His Picture" was originally published in Poems (Printed by M. F. for John Marriot 1633).   John Donne was born in London in 1572. He is the author of Poems (Printed by M. F. for John Marriot, 1633) and Essays in Divinity (Printed by T. M. for Richard Marriot, 1651). Donne died on March 31, 1631. Poetry by Donne   John Donne's Poetry (W. W. Norton & Company, 2007) "The Collar" by George Herbert "The Picture of Little T. C. in a Prospect of Flowers" by Andrew Marvell "Ah! Sunflower" by William Blake Help Support Poem-a-Day   If you value Poem-a-Day, please consider a monthly donation or one-time gift to help make it possible. Poem-a-Day is the only digital series publishing new, previously unpublished work by today's poets each weekday morning. The free series, which also features a curated selection of classic poems on weekends, reaches 450,000+ readers daily. Thank you! 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