Why do you shun me, Chloe, like the fawn,
That, fearful of the breezes and the wood,
Has sought her timorous mother since the dawn
And on the pathless mountain tops has stood?
Her trembling heart a thousand fears invites–
Her sinking knees with nameless terrors shake;
Whether the rustling leaf of spring affrights,
Or the green lizards stir the slumbering brake.
I do not follow with a tigerish thought
Or with the fierce Gaetulian lion’s quest;
So, quickly leave your mother, as you ought,
Full ripe to nestle on a husband’s breast.
(Eugene Field)
More Poetry from Eugene Field:
Eugene Field Poems based on Topics: Mothers, Spring- Lollyby, Lolly, Lollyby (Eugene Field Poems)
- Booh! (Eugene Field Poems)
- The Ballad Of The Taylor Pup (Eugene Field Poems)
- The Peter-Bird (Eugene Field Poems)
- A Proper Trewe Idyll Of Camelot (Eugene Field Poems)
- John Smith (Eugene Field Poems)
Readers Who Like This Poem Also Like:
Based on Topics: Spring Poems, Mothers PoemsBased on Keywords: affrights, tigerish