"To O. E. A." by Claude McKay

Your voice is the color of a robin's breast,

Support Poem-a-Day February 16, 2020   To O. E. A. Claude McKay Your voice is the color of a robin's breast,      And there's a sweet sob in it like rain—still rain in the night. Among the leaves of the trumpet-tree, close to his nest,      The pea-dove sings, and each note thrills me with strange delight Like the words, wet with music, that well from your trembling throat.           I'm afraid of your eyes, they're so bold,           Searching me through, reading my thoughts, shining like gold. But sometimes they are gentle and soft like the dew on the lips of the eucharis Before the sun comes warm with his lover's kiss,     You are sea-foam, pure with the star's loveliness, Not mortal, a flower, a fairy, too fair for the beauty-shorn earth, All wonderful things, all beautiful things, gave of their wealth to your birth:       O I love you so much, not recking of passion, that I feel it is wrong,           But men will love you, flower, fairy, non-mortal spirit burdened with flesh, Forever, life-long. This poem is in the public domain. Published in Poem-a-Day on February 16, 2020, by the Academy of American Poets. "To O. E. A." appeared in The Book of American Negro Poetry (Harcourt, Brace and Co, 1922). Claude McKay was born in Jamaica on September 15, 1889. He is the author of several books of poetry including Harlem Shadows (Harcourt, Brace, and Company, 1922), Songs of Jamaica (Gardner, 1912), and Constab Ballads (Watts, 1912). McKay's viewpoints and poetic achievements helped set the tone for the Harlem Renaissance. He died on May 22, 1948. Constab Ballads (Watts, 1912)   "Love is a Flame" by George Marion McClellan read more "Will You Come?" by Edward Thomas read more Thanks to Roger Reeves, author of King Me (Copper Canyon Press, 2013), who curated Poem-a-Day for this month's weekdays. Read an extended Q&A about Reeves' curatorial approach and find out more about our guest editors for the year. Make a one-time contribution to help us publish Poem-a-Day.   Make your support go further by enrolling in monthly giving and joining the Mug Club! Copyright © 2020 The Academy of American Poets, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website. Our mailing address is: The Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane St #901 New York, NY 10038 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.