Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, A TRYST WITH DEATH, by ADELAIDE ANNE PROCTER


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

A TRYST WITH DEATH, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: I am footsore and very weary
Last Line: And he only can give me rest.
Alternate Author Name(s): Berwick, Mary
Subject(s): Death; Dreams; Night; Time; Travel; Dead, The; Nightmares; Bedtime; Journeys; Trips


I AM footsore and very weary,
But I travel to meet a Friend:
The way is long and dreary,
But I know that it soon must end.

He is travelling fast like the whirlwind,
And though I creep slowly on,
We are drawing nearer, nearer,
And the journey is almost done.

Through the heat of many summers,
Through many a springtime rain,
Through long autumns and weary winters,
I have hoped to meet him, in vain.

I know that he will not fail me,
So I count every hour chime,
Every throb of my heart's beating,
That tells of the flight of Time.

On the day of my birth he plighted
His kingly word to me: --
I have seen him in dreams so often,
That I know what his smile must be.

I have toiled through the sunny woodland,
Through fields that basked in the light;
And through the lone paths in the forest
I crept in the dead of night.

I will not fear at his coming,
Although I must meet him alone;
He will look in my eyes so gently,
And take my hand in his own.

Like a dream all my toil will vanish,
When I lay my head on his breast:
But the journey is very weary,
And he only can give me rest.





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net