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Read more poems by Emily Dickinson: Emily Dickinson Poems at Poetry X.

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I would not paint—a picture

Emily Dickinson

505

I would not paint—a picture—
I'd rather be the One
Its bright impossibility
To dwell—delicious—on—
And wonder how the fingers feel
Whose rare—celestial—stir—
Evokes so sweet a Torment—
Such sumptuous—Despair—

I would not talk, like Cornets—
I'd rather be the One
Raised softly to the Ceilings—
And out, and easy on—
Through Villages of Ether—
Myself endued Balloon
By but a lip of Metal—
The pier to my Pontoon—

Nor would I be a Poet—
It's finer—own the Ear—
Enamored—impotent—content—
The License to revere,
A privilege so awful
What would the Dower be,
Had I the Art to stun myself
With Bolts of Melody!

Added: 9 Sep 2001 | Last Read: 7 Jun 2025 4:38 PM | Viewed: 12032 times

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URL: http://plagiarist.com/poetry/1579/ | Viewed on 7 June 2025.
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