What the Poppies Said

“We have to-day,” so the poppies said
To the west wind softly blowing,
“To-day to hold, in our bosom red,
The great white tears that the night has shed
And the sunbeams warm and glowing.”

“We have to-day,” said the lover bold,
“To spell out the sweet old story,
My heart for thine, and the tale is told--
O, be not, sweetheart, so shy and cold,
See, the world is filled with glory!”

The west wind sighed to the sea that night,
“’Tis a thought to give one sorrow,
The poppy boasts of her pearls of white,
The lover his store of dear delight,
But neither whispers to-morrow.”