by Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886)
Heart not so heavy as mine
Language: English
[Heart not so heavy as mine, Wending late home -- As it passed my window Whistled itself a tune -- ]1 [A careless snatch -- a ballad -- A Ditty of the street -- ]2 Yet to my [irritated]2 ear An anodyne so sweet -- It was as if a Bobolink, [Sauntering this way,]2 Carolled and mused, and carolled -- Then bubbled [slow]3 away. It was as if a chirping brook Upon a toilsome way, Set bleeding feet to minuets Without the knowing why -- [Tomorrow]4 -- night will come again -- [Perhaps -- tired and sore]5 -- [Oh Bugle, by the window]6, I pray you stroll once more!
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Carter: "Heart, wending late home,/ As it passed my window/ Whistled itself a tune,/ Not so heavy as mine, / Whistled itself a tune,"
2 omitted by Carter.
3 Carter: "slowly"
4 Carter: "Heart not so heavy, / Tomorrow"
5 Carter: "Weary, perhaps, and sore"
6 Carter: "Ah bugle by my window"
Text Authorship:
- by Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886), no title, appears in Poems by Emily Dickinson, first published 1891 [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 Elliott Cook Carter, Jr. (1908 - 2012), "Heart not so heavy as mine", published 1939 [ SATB chorus a cappella ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2003-10-12
Line count: 20
Word count: 97