The speaker describes a parting of gifts: her songs have gone out to the world, represented by leaves blown from a tree. The tree now stands bare on its shining hill. What remains is not another song but her own still, silent self, offered to one person. The “lordly wind” that stripped the tree seems to be that person’s arrival—or at least the force of her feeling for them. The leaves fly far away “as forgotten things,” which gives the poem a wistful, slightly melancholy quality. Yet the bare tree against the blue is not ugly; it is clear, high, and open. The final two lines say it plainly: “I gave my songs to the rest, / Myself to you.” There is love in that, but also sacrifice and vulnerability. The mood is quiet, intimate, and a little sad, like a late autumn landscape.
The Tree of Song — Summary
I sang my songs for the rest, For you I am still; The tree of my song is bare On its shining hill.
For you came like a lordly wind, And the leaves were whirled Far as forgotten things Past the rim of the world.
The tree of my song stands bare Against the blue-- I gave my songs to the rest, Myself to you.