In a Certain Place

I found Love in a certain place
Asleep and cold -- or cold and dead?-
All ivory-white upon his bed,
All ivory-white his face.

His hands were folded
On his quiet breast,
To his figure laid at rest
Chilly bed was moulded.

His hair hung lax about his brow,
I had not seen his face before:
Or, if I saw it once, it wore
Another aspect now.

No trace of last night's sorrow,
No shadow of to-morrow:
All at peace (thus all sorrows cease),
All at peace.

I wondered: Were his eyes
Soft or falcon-clear?
I wondered: As he lies
Does he feel me near?

In silence my heart spoke
And wondered: If he woke
And found me sitting nigh him
And felt me sitting by him.

If life flushed to his cheek,
He living man with men,
Then if I heard him speak
Oh should I know him then?