There’s a gold
Sheen on these flower petals as they fold
More truly mine, more like to my desire.
The flower petals fold. They are by the sun
Forgotten. In a shadowy wood they grow
Where the dark trees keep up a to-and-fro
Shadowy waving. Who will watch them shine
When I have dreamed my dream? Ah, darling mine,
Find them, gather them for me one by one.
from Secret Flowers by Katherine Mansfield
I’d forgotten about this poem by Katherine Mansfield, until I read an article in The Guardian a few days ago about some of her previously unknown works being discovered in an archive. It coincided with our anemones flowering, which made an ideal photograph, so the whole thing was rather serendipitous. I’m not that familiar with Mansfield’s poetry, associating her more with her short stories, but I do love this particular poem.
