THE REFUSAL

Mine is a palace fair to see,

All hung with gold and silver things,

It is more glorious than a king’ s,

And crownèd queens might envy me.

Ah, no, I will not let you in!

Stay rather at the gates and weep

For all the splendour that I keep,

The treasures that you cannot win.

While you desire and I refuse,

For both the palace still is here —

Its turrets gold, its silver gear

Are yours to wish for — mine to use.

But if I let you in, I know

The spell would break, the palace fade,

And we stand, trembling and afraid,

Lost in the dark where chill winds blow.