You took the lilt from my heart of hearts,
And the breath of song from my soul;
And the mind of me that had once been free
And buoyantly young, and whole;
Grew calm and still as a barren sea,
Where never a star beam shone,
A sea where never a ripple danced--
That reflected your face alone.
I walked in a daze down well-worn paths--
Paths that your feet had trod;
I thought your thoughts and I spoke your tongue,
I knelt to your hostile God.
And the dreams that had been a part of me,
I tossed with a sigh away,
And left to rust in the misty dust
Of the land called Yesterday.
My hands lay folded in slim repose,
Quite as you bade them rest;
Folded, meek, o'er the leaden heart
That tortured my gypsie breast.
And I smiled with my lips--my eyes were numb--
I smiled for I never knew,
That the mind of me was a lifeless sea,
Reflecting the face of you!
You took the lilt from my carefree life,
And the song from my singing heart;
But there came a day when the world grew gray,
When I knew that we must part....
So I tore you out of your soul-bound shrine--
And, oh, though it caused me pain,
I raised my face to the sky and knew
That my song would come again!
