O Thou, England!

by Dawn Pisturino

Away, away in a distant land

More green and mild

Than a summer's day;

More grey and wild

Than an ocean bay,

O thou, England!---Verdant isle of my dreams!

Fallen anew

On the ripened arbour,

Sea mist and dew

Shroud the ocean harbour:

My heart yearns to wade through thy soaking sand

And ramble along thy running streams!

So far, so far---and yet, so near

Thy splendid beauty lies,

A sparkling jewel among the blue

Of ocean, sea, and skies!

And would I could, I'd wish it true,

O thou, England!---How kettles then would madly boil!

Blazing fires would crackle and snap,

Scones would bubble and rise;

Glad would I roam thy wooded map

In harmony with the coveted prize:

Down would I bend to drop a tear

And kiss thy wet and fertile soil.

September 27, 1986

Written for my penpal, Janet, in Chichester, West Sussex, England