O garden isle, beloved by Sun and Sea, —
Whose bluest billows kiss thy curving bays,
Whose amorous light enfolds thee in warm rays
That fill with fruit each dark-leaved orange-tree, —
What hidden hatred hath the Earth for thee?
Behold, again, in these dark, dreadful days,
She trembles with her wrath, and swiftly lays
Thy beauty waste in wreck and agony!
Is Nature, then, a strife of jealous powers,
And man the plaything of unconscious fate?
Not so, my troubled heart! God reigns above
And man is greatest in his darkest hours:
Walking amid the cities desolate,
The Son of God appears in human love.
(Henry Van Dyke)
More Poetry from Henry Van Dyke:
Henry Van Dyke Poems based on Topics: Love, Man, God, Sadness, Nature, Cities, Fate & Destiny, Anger, Sons, Envy & Jealousy, Walking- Vera (Henry Van Dyke Poems)
- The Builders (Henry Van Dyke Poems)
- The Toiling Of Felix (Henry Van Dyke Poems)
- Texas (Henry Van Dyke Poems)
- Who Follow The Flag (Henry Van Dyke Poems)
- Eight Echoes From The Poems Of August Angellier (Henry Van Dyke Poems)
Readers Who Like This Poem Also Like:
Based on Topics: Love Poems, Man Poems, God Poems, Sadness Poems, Nature Poems, Fate & Destiny Poems, Sons Poems, Anger Poems, Cities Poems, Envy & Jealousy Poems, Walking PoemsBased on Keywords: isle, lays, wreck, dreadful, greatest, billows, garden, swiftly, unconscious, hatred, darkest
- The Maid of Gerringong (Henry Kendall Poems)
- My Lady's Lamantation And Complaint Against The Dean (Jonathan Swift Poems)
- The Devil's Walk. A Ballad (Percy Bysshe Shelley Poems)
- Who Cares? (John Hartley Poems)
- An Ode Upon a Question Moved, Whether Love Should Continue Forever (Lord Edward Herbert of Cherbury Poems)