I walk down the garden paths,And all the daffodilsAre blowing, and the bright blue squills.I walk down the patterned garden-pathsIn my stiff, brocaded gown.With my powdered hair and jewelled fan,I too am a rarePattern. As I wander downThe garden paths.My dress is richly figured,And the trainMakes a pink and silver stainOn the gravel1, and the thriftOf the borders.Just a plate of current fashion,Tripping by in high-heeled, ribboned shoes.Not a softness anywhere about me,Only whalebone and brocade.And I sink on a seat in the shadeOf a lime tree. For my passionWars against the stiff brocade.The daffodils and squillsFlutter in the breezeAs they please.And I weep;For the lime-tree is in blossomAnd one small flower has dropped upon my bosom2.And the plashing of waterdropsIn the marble fountainComes down the garden-paths.The dripping never stops.Underneath3 my stiffened4 gownIs the softness of a woman bathing in a marble basin,A basin in the midst of hedges grownSo thick, she cannot see her lover hiding,But she guesses he is near,And the sliding of the waterSeems the stroking of a dearHand upon her.What is Summer in a fine brocaded gown!I should like to see it lying in a heap upon the ground.All the pink and silver crumpled5 up on the ground.I would be the pink and silver as I ran along the paths,And he would stumble after,Bewildered by my laughter.I should see the sun flashing from his sword-hilt and the buckleson his shoes.I would chooseTo lead him in a maze6 along the patterned paths,A bright and laughing maze for my heavy-booted lover,Till he caught me in the shade,And the buttons of his waistcoat bruised7 my body as he clasped me,Aching, melting, unafraid.With the shadows of the leaves and the sundrops,And the plopping of the waterdrops,All about us in the open afternoon --I am very like to swoonWith the weight of this brocade,For the sun sifts8 through the shade.Underneath the fallen blossomIn my bosom,Is a letter I have hid.It was brought to me this morning by a rider from the Duke."Madam, we regret to inform you that Lord HartwellDied in action Thursday se'nnight."As I read it in the white, morning sunlight,The letters squirmed like snakes."Any answer, Madam," said my footman."No," I told him."See that the messenger takes some refreshment9.No, no answer."And I walked into the garden,Up and down the patterned paths,In my stiff, correct brocade.The blue and yellow flowers stood up proudly in the sun,Each one.I stood upright too,Held rigid10 to the patternBy the stiffness of my gown.Up and down I walked,Up and down.In a month he would have been my husband.In a month, here, underneath this lime,We would have broke the pattern;He for me, and I for him,He as Colonel, I as Lady,On this shady seat.He had a whimThat sunlight carried blessing11.And I answered, "It shall be as you have said."Now he is dead.In Summer and in Winter I shall walkUp and downThe patterned garden-pathsIn my stiff, brocaded gown.The squills and daffodilsWill give place to pillared roses, and to asters, and to snow.I shall goUp and down,In my gown.Gorgeously arrayed,Boned and stayed.And the softness of my body will be guarded from embraceBy each button, hook, and lace.For the man who should loose me is dead,Fighting with the Duke in Flanders,In a pattern called a war.Christ! What are patterns for?
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1 gravel
n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石
参考例句：
We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。 More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。
2 bosom
n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的
参考例句：
She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。 A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。
3 underneath
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adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面
参考例句：
Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。 She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。
4 stiffened
加强的
参考例句：
He leaned towards her and she stiffened at this invasion of her personal space. 他向她俯过身去，这种侵犯她个人空间的举动让她绷紧了身子。 She stiffened with fear. 她吓呆了。
5 crumpled
adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式 <a hRef=htTps://Www.EuZw.nEt/miNiform.html>苏州阅读写作培训</a>
参考例句：
She crumpled the letter up into a ball and threw it on the fire. 她把那封信揉成一团扔进了火里。 She flattened out the crumpled letter on the desk. 她在写字台上把皱巴巴的信展平。
6 maze
n.迷宫，八阵图，混乱，迷惑
参考例句：
He found his way through the complex maze of corridors.他穿过了迷宮一样的走廊。 She was lost in the maze for several hours.一连几小时，她的头脑处于一片糊涂状态。
7 bruised
[医]青肿的，瘀紫的
参考例句：
his bruised and bloodied nose 他沾满血的青肿的鼻子 She had slipped and badly bruised her face. 她滑了一跤，摔得鼻青脸肿。
8 sifts
v.筛( sift的第三人称单数 )；筛滤；细查；详审
参考例句：
He sifts you to free you from your husks. 他将你们筛选，使你们摆脱麸糠。 来自互联网 The sunshine sifts through the cloud. 阳光透过云层照射下来。 来自互联网
9 refreshment
n.恢复，精神爽快，提神之事物；（复数）refreshments:点心，茶点
参考例句：
He needs to stop fairly often for refreshment.他须时不时地停下来喘口气。 A hot bath is a great refreshment after a day's work.在一天工作之后洗个热水澡真是舒畅。
10 rigid
adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的
参考例句：
She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。 The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。
11 blessing
n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿
参考例句：
The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。 A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。
《Amy Lowell - Patterns》添加时间：2024-12-14；更新时间：2025-03-09
