by Morris Rosenfeld (1862 - 1923)
I Know Not Why
Language: English
I lift mine eyes against the sky, The clouds are weeping, so am I; I lift mine eyes again on high, The sun is smiling, so am I. Why do I smile? Why do I weep? I do not know; it lies too deep. I hear the winds of autumn sigh, They break my heart, they make me cry; I hear the birds of lovely spring, My [hopes revive]1, I help them sing. Why do I sing? Why do I cry? It lies so deep, I know not why.
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Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
Confirmed with the anthology The Little Book of Modern Verse, ed. by Jessie B. Rittenhouse, 1917.
1 Owen: "hope revives"Text Authorship:
- by Morris Rosenfeld (1862 - 1923), "I Know Not Why" [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 Vivian Blythe Owen (1898 - 2000), "I Know Not Why", op. 1 no. 2 (1941) [ high voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2026-02-28
Line count: 12
Word count: 91