Louise Bogan : Poet Laureate : 1945-1946

The Frightened Man


In fear of the rich mouth
I kissed the thin,--
Even that was a trap
To snare me in.
Even she, so long
The frail, the scentless,
Is become strong,
And proves relentless.
O, forget her praise,
And how I sought her
Through a hazardous maze
By shafted water.


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from Body of this Death: Poems (1923)