IN THAT DARK SILENT HOUR

by: John Freeman

      N that dark silent hour
      When the wind wants power,
      And in the black height
      The sky wants light,
      Stirless and black
      In utter lack,
      And not a sound
      Escapes from that untroubled round:--
      To wake then
      In the dark, and ache then
      Until the dark is gone--
      Lonely, yet not alone;
      Hearing another's breath,
      Knowing one sleeps near
      That day held dear
       
      And dreams held dear; but now
      In this sharp moment--how
      Share the moment's sweetness,
      Forego its completeness,
      Nor be alone
      Now the dark is grown
      Spritual and deep
      More than in dreams and sleep?
       
      O, it is pain, 'tis need
      That so will plead
      For a little loneliness.
      If it be pain to miss
      Loved touch, look and lip,
      Companionship
      Yet is verier pain
      Then, then
      In that dark silent hour
      When the wind wants power,
      And you, near or far, sleep,
      And your released thoughts towards me creep,
      While I, imprisoned, awake,
      Ache--ache
      To be for one
      Long, little moment with myself alone.

'In That Dark Silent Hour' is reprinted from An Anthology of Modern Verse. Ed. A. Methuen. London: Methuen & Co., 1921.

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