| Jessie B. Rittenhouse, ed. (1869–1948). The Little Book of Modern Verse. 1917. |
| |
| 136. The Invisible Bride |
| | | By Edwin Markham |
| |
| |
| THE LOW-VOICED girls that go | |
| In gardens of the Lord, | |
| Like flowers of the field they grow | |
| In sisterly accord. | |
| |
| Their whispering feet are white | 5 |
| Along the leafy ways; | |
| They go in whirls of light | |
| Too beautiful for praise. | |
| |
| And in their band forsooth | |
| Is one to set me free— | 10 |
| The one that touched my youth— | |
| The one God gave to me. | |
| |
| She kindles the desire | |
| Whereby the gods survive— | |
| The white ideal fire | 15 |
| That keeps my soul alive. | |
| |
| Now at the wondrous hour, | |
| She leaves her star supreme, | |
| And comes in the night’s still power, | |
| To touch me with a dream. | 20 |
| |
| Sibyl of mystery | |
| On roads unknown to men, | |
| Softly she comes to me, | |
| And goes to God again. | |
| |
|
|
|
