Gwendolyn B. Bennett’s “Secret” captures the speaker’s quiet, almost reverent affection for someone she keeps hidden in her heart. She imagines making a song from the beloved’s hair—gold with green shadows—and from blue eyes touched with silver. The act of creating that song becomes a way of cherishing the person: she plays with it gently, wraps it in a blanket, and sings it a lullaby. There is tenderness here, but also distance. The beloved never learns about this inner devotion. The speaker protects the feeling like a fragile, precious object, keeping it entirely to herself. The mood is hushed and dreamlike, full of soft colors and careful gestures. It feels less like confession than like a private ritual—love experienced inwardly, with all its beauty kept secret.
Secret — Summary
I shall make a song like your hair ... Gold-woven with shadows green-tinged, And I shall play with my song As my fingers might play with your hair. Deep in my heart I shall play with my song of you, Gently.... I shall laugh At its sensitive lustre ... I shall wrap my song in a blanket, Blue like your eyes are blue With tiny shots of silver. I shall wrap it caressingly, Tenderly.... I shall sing a lullaby To the song I have made Of your hair and eyes ... And you will never know That deep in my heart I shelter a song of you Secretly....