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by George William Russell (1867 - 1935)

Affinity
Language: English 
You and I have found the secret way,	
None can bar our love or say us nay:	
All the world may stare and never know	
You and I are twined together so.	
 
You and I for all his vaunted width
Know the giant Space is but a myth;	
Over miles and miles of pure deceit	
You and I have found our lips can meet.	
 
You and I have laughed the leagues apart	
In the soft delight of heart to heart.
If there's a gulf to meet or limit set,	
You and I have never found it yet.	
 
You and I have trod the backward way	
To the happy heart of yesterday,	
To the love we felt in ages past.
You and I have found it still to last.	
 
You and I have found the joy had birth	
In the angel childhood of the earth,	
Hid within the heart of man and maid.	
You and I of Time are not afraid.
 
You and I can mock his fabled wing,	
For a kiss is an immortal thing.	
And the throb wherein those old lips met	
Is a living music in us yet.

Text Authorship:

  • by George William Russell (1867 - 1935), "Affinity", appears in Collected Poems, first published 1913 [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 Fritz Bennicke Hart (1874 - 1949), "Affinity", op. 31 (Seven Sets of Seven Songs, Set IV) no. 1 (1918) [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2005-02-23
Line count: 24
Word count: 190

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