~ The Land of Faerie ~
~ The Fairy Goldsmith ~
'Here's a wonderful thing, A humming-bird's wing
In hammered gold, And store well chosen
Of snowflakes frozen In crystal cold.
Black onyx cherries And mistletoe berries
Of chrysoprase, Jade buds, tight shut,
All carven and cut In intricate ways.
Here, if you please Are little gilt bees
In amber drops Which look like honey,
Translucent and sunny, From clover-tops.
Here's an elfin girl Of mother-of-pearl
And moonshine made, With tortise-shell hair
Both dusky and fair In its light and shade.
Here's lacquer laid thin, Like a scarlet skin
On an ivory fruit; And a filigree frost
Of frail notes lost From a fairy lute.
Here's a turquoise chain Of sun-shower rain
To wear if you wish; And glittering green
With aquamarine, A silvery fish.
Here are pearls all strung On a thread among
Pretty pink shells; And bubbles blown
From the opal stone Which ring like bells.
Touch them and take them, But do not break them!
Beneath your hand They will wither like foam
If you carry them home Out of fairy-land.
O, they never can last Though you hide them fast
From moth and from rust; In your monstrous day
They will crumble away Into quicksilver dust.
~
by Elinor Wylie ~
The Elfen's Beloved Children
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