"When the Large Moon Comes"

"When the Large Moon Comes"

When the large moon comes to the larger night

       And swims in its own glow across the sky,

       And the white sea climbs up the rocks, climbs high,

And clings a moment in the mad delight

Of having ventured further than it should;

       When the frogs murmur their few, lonely notes,

       About the lilied mere, with tireless throats,

And one night-songster thrills the dreaming wood

With her full strains of passion and regret,

       And crickets shrilly chirp beneath the grass

Whereon the early dews lie sweet and wet:—

       Up thro’ the years come thy dear, tender eyes,

Warm breast, fond lips and faithful hand… Alas!

       To my heart-greetings come no fond replies.

"When the Large Moon Comes" printed in an unidentified publication, clipping courtesy of the Ella Higginson Papers, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies, Heritage Resources, Western Washington University, Bellingham WA.

This poem is also printed under the alternate title "Dost Thou Remember." It also appears in Ella Higginson's literary column "Clover Leaves" in The Seattle Times on September 8, 1900.