OVERCAST SKY

by: Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867)

eseemeth thy glance, soft enshrouded with dew,

Thy mysterious eyes (are they grey, green or blue?),

Alternately cruel, and tender, and shy,

Reflect both the languor and calm of the sky.




Thou recall est those white days—with shadows caressed,

Engendering tears from th' enraptured breast,

When racked by an anguish unfathomed that weeps,

The nerves, too awake, jibe the spirit that sleeps.




At times—thou art like those horizons divine,

Where the suns of the nebulous seasons decline;

How resplendent art thou—O pasturage vast,

Illumed by the beams of a sky overcast!




O! dangerous dame—oh seductive clime!

As well, will I love both thy snow and thy rime,

And shall I know how from the frosts to entice

Delights that are keener than iron and ice?

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