Author: Luisa Perkins
•9:52 AM

The Windhover

-To Christ our Lord

I CAUGHT this morning morning’s minion, king-
dom of daylight’s dauphin, dapple-dawn-drawn Falcon, in his riding
Of the rolling level underneath him steady air, and striding
High there, how he rung upon the rein of a wimpling wing
In his ecstasy! then off, off forth on swing,
As a skate’s heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend: the hurl and gliding
Rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding
Stirred for a bird,—the achieve of; the mastery of the thing!

Brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
Buckle! AND the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!

No wonder of it: shéer plód makes plough down sillion
Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear,
Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermillion.


--Gerard Manley Hopkins
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10 comments:

On 28/9/07 , Jenna said...

Beautiful. I think you are rubbing off on me after all these years. As soon as I read the first line, I knew it was GMH! Yay, me! And I see this is the origin of your "Plough down sillion" in your Topical Guide. Lovely.

 
On 28/9/07 , Annette Lyon said...

Now that's just beautiful.

 
On 28/9/07 , Kimberly Vanderhorst said...

A new poet to fall for. Many, many thanks for the sharing of that.

 
On 29/9/07 , Anonymous said...

I was never good at reading or writing poetry. I guess the guessing of what they are trying to say turns me off. Some poetry though I do understand and enjoy though...so I guess I'm not a complete poetry idiot.

 
On 29/9/07 , Joeprah said...

Ahhh, just what I needed. blue-bleak embers...wow! Thanks for posting that one! It has been a while for me, writing or reading poetry. I think about it alot, I will stop by to feed that missing part of me, great site!

 
On 29/9/07 , painted maypole said...

beautiful

 
On 29/9/07 , Anonymous said...

Nice. And Sirdar may have poetry in him yet, his dad writes poetry. Sirdar just has to age a few years. I have not taken time to study or read much poetry lately, it is always nice to go to someone's blog and get the exposure to culture I am so lacking at times.

 
On 1/10/07 , Anonymous said...

Ahh, one of my all-time favorites for so many reasons. Thank you!

 
On 1/10/07 , Kimberly Vanderhorst said...

No SOS? Now, if I hadn't just received the gift of two chapters to revel in, I'd be seriously pouting over here.

 
On 2/10/07 , Unknown said...

Very beautiful. Especially love the line "Brute beauty and valour and act . . ."