The speaker begins asleep in a bleak dream of winter: hills heavy with snow, an old slow river, silence lying over vines and trees. That lonely, frozen scene is suddenly broken by birdsong. The sound arrives like light and falling sweetness, as if windows had opened and white hands were throwing roses from a balcony. The bird’s singing feels almost imperious because it demands happiness so completely, filling the air with golden moments. Where the speaker sits in darkness, the mocking-bird belongs to daybreak—bright, lavish, alive. Rather than resenting that contrast, she asks the bird to let its “avalanche of loveliness” pour over her heart and shake her out of sleep. The poem moves from wintry isolation to urgent, overflowing joy, showing how a bird’s voice can pull someone out of inner darkness and into the present.
To a Mocking-Bird — Summary
I was asleep, dreaming that I could see The north hills bowed and burdened with the snow, And the grey-bearded river old and slow, And the sick silences on vine and tree — When in upon my loneliness and me Light rushed, and sweetness tumbled down as though Windows had opened for white hands to throw Roses and roses from a balcony.
Oh Bird, imperious for happiness, For moments gold as arrows in the air, I am the only dark in all daybreak! Let loose your avalanche of loveliness Over my heart, until I am aware How long I sleep — and sing me wide awake !