Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SUBURBAN IDYL, by POLLY CHASE


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SUBURBAN IDYL, by                    
First Line: They are clearing ground to build a house
Last Line: And children's arms around us like a wall!
Subject(s): Calm; Family Life; Flowers; Suburbs; Placid; Undisturbed; Tranquility; Relatives


They are clearing ground to build a house
In the vacant lot next door
That I walk through every morning
Coming from the store --
In the tiny tangled wildwood with its thickets to explore,
And the talk
Of a poplar as I walk.

There is peace
In this still suburban street.
Trim and neat
We keep our modest gardens, and I know
That flowers will grow
In my newest neighbor's garden with a fragrance just as sweet;
With the wild grass trimmed and seeded,
Rolled and weeded,
And hollyhocks put primly in a row.

And at dusk,
When the air is sweet with phlox,
A tired-looking business man will go
To and fro,
Watering the eager roots of drooping summer flowers
While my husband waters ours.
And children in the wet grass will be wiggling their toes,
Or leaping over fountains where the hose
Leaks and sputters,
Or pulling out the petals of a rose.

Yes, there will still be peace!
(But joy for me will cease --
No rambles where the prickly brambles crawl!)
A still, wind-sheltered peace
That lulls life to the echo of a call . . . .
Suburban life . . . .
Man and wife . . . .
And children's arms around us like a wall!





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