A speaker remembers a spring encounter with a woman he loves, watching her come through flowery grass while butterflies and bees drift around her ankles and sunlight breaks on the sea. Everything feels heightened, as if the landscape itself is drawn to her. Then morning arrives: a swallow crowds the dawn, cuckoo calls fill the dewy South. He leaves her alone on the hill, holding the memory of one last kiss still burning on her mouth. There is little narrative here—just a charged pause between desire and goodbye. The mood is tender and bittersweet, with all the freshness of spring making the moment feel more alive and the parting more lonely. The poem leaves behind that single warm image: a kiss, a hill, and an ache.
Spring Love — Summary
I saw her coming through the flowery grass, Round her swift ankles butterfly and bee Blent loud and silent wings; I saw her pass Where foam-bows shivered on the sunny sea.
Then came the swallow crowding up the dawn, And cuckoo-echoes filled the dewy South. I left my love upon the hill, alone, My last kiss burning on her lovely mouth.