Poetry Sunday: Sonnets from the Portuguese - #43 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

I've featured this poem here before and I probably will again. It is a personal favorite of mine and is the most perfect poetic expression of love that I know. Valentine's Day is coming up, the day on which we celebrate our love. I hope that you, dear reader, have much love to celebrate on that day.

Sonnets from the Portuguese - #43

by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.

Comments

  1. jabblogFebruary 9, 2025 at 4:35 AM

    Perfect! How love changed her life.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dorothy BordersFebruary 9, 2025 at 9:54 AM

      Yes, the story behind the poem gives it even greater meaning.

      Delete
  2. David M. Gascoigne,February 9, 2025 at 6:09 AM

    Now that’s commitment! So beautifully expressed. I’d be happy to write one line of it in my whole life.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dorothy BordersFebruary 9, 2025 at 9:57 AM

      Indeed. But since I can't write such a perfect line, I'm happy to at least be able to quote it.

      Delete
  3. AlanaFebruary 9, 2025 at 10:13 AM

    I just read up on the backstory of this perfect poem. What a story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dorothy BordersFebruary 9, 2025 at 10:15 AM

      It is a tribute to the power of love to utterly change a life.

      Delete
  4. thecuecardFebruary 9, 2025 at 3:31 PM

    I might need to read the backstory. Love thee better after death ... wow.

    ReplyDelete

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