by James Stephens (1882 - 1950)
The buds
Language: English
Now I can see The buds have come again On every tree. Through some dear intercourse of sun and dew, And thrilling root, and folding earth, anew They come in beauty. They up to the sun, As on a breast, are lifting every one Their leaves. Under the eaves The sparrows are in hiding Making love. There is a chatter in the woods above, Where the black crow Is saying what his sweetheart wants to know. The sun is shining fair, And the green is on the tree. And the wind goes everywhere Whispering so secretly ; You will die unless you do Find a mate to whisper to.
Note: the 1915 version begins "I can see"
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
Authorship:
- by James Stephens (1882 - 1950), "The buds", appears in Songs from the Clay, first published 1915, rev. 1926 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Walter Byron Mourant (1910 - 1995), "The buds", copyright © 1963 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-01-22
Line count: 21
Word count: 109