Italy

Poems by Bessie Rayner Belloc

IN a garden filled with sunshine,
Deep in the heart of Rome,
Came the exiled gods of Hellas,
And made themselves a home.

Came Venus, apple-laden -
Came Psyche, clad with wings -
And creatures born of wood and stream -
And every Muse that sings.

To them came flying, one by one,
The Hours with noiseless feet;
But they lingered all together -
They found the place so sweet!

If you have chanced to lose them,
Go look among the flowers,
And somewhere in that garden
You'll find those wandering Hours!

From every shady portal
Shy forms are peeping round;
An arch delight is on their brows,
But in their lips no sound.

To come and walk among them
Soothes all the soul with peace;
There are no shadows in the hearts
Of these fair gods of Greece!

The murmur of the outer world
Can never reach them here;
The roses blossom round them,
And the fountain trickles near; -

Calm types of Nature's innocence,
Apart from our control,
With quietness for atmosphere,
And beauty for a soul!

The heights of old Olympus
Were grand with storm and shine;
The gods who ruled the pagan world
Had port and mien divine.

But the younger ones and gentler
With willing hearts have come
To dwell within this garden,
Deep in the heart of Rome.
 

St John Lateran

The Desolation of Veii

The Lateran Cloisters

The Appian Way

Minerva Medica

The Coelian Hill

Under the Olives      A Dedication      Poems

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