Famous At Once Poems by Famous Poets

These are examples of famous At Once poems written by some of the greatest and most-well-known modern and classical poets. PoetrySoup is a great educational poetry resource of famous at once poems. These examples illustrate what a famous at once poem looks like and its form, scheme, or style (where appropriate).

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A learned man came to me once

by Stephen Crane
 A learned man came to me once.
He said, "I know the way, -- come."
And I was overjoyed at this.
Together we hastened.
Soon, too soon, were we
Where my eyes were useless,
And I knew not the ways of my feet.
I clung to the hand of my friend;
But at last he cried, "I am lost."...Read more of this...

The Gardener XXXVIII: My Love Once upon a Time

by Rabindranath Tagore
 My love, once upon a time your poet
launched a great epic in his mind.
Alas, I was not careful, and it struck
your ringing anklets and came to
grief.
It broke up into scraps of songs and
lay scattered at your feet.
All my cargo of the stories of old
wars was tossed by the laughing waves
and soaked in tears and sank.
You must make this loss...Read more of this...

Once there came a man

by Stephen Crane
 Once there came a man
Who said,
"Range me all men of the world in rows."
And instantly
There was terrific clamour among the people
Against being ranged in rows.
There was a loud quarrel, world-wide.
It endured for ages;
And blood was shed
By those who would not stand in rows,
And by those who pined to stand in rows.
Eventually, the man went to death, weeping.
And those who...Read more of this...

Sonnets 05: Once More Into My Arid Days Like Dew

by Edna St. Vincent Millay
 Once more into my arid days like dew,
Like wind from an oasis, or the sound
Of cold sweet water bubbling underground,
A treacherous messenger, the thought of you
Comes to destroy me; once more I renew
Firm faith in your abundance, whom I found
Long since to be but just one other mound
Of sand, whereon no green thing ever grew.
And once again, and wiser...Read more of this...

Once a man clambering to the housetops

by Stephen Crane
 Once a man clambering to the housetops
Appealed to the heavens.
With strong voice he called to the deaf spheres;
A warrior's shout he raised to the suns.
Lo, at last, there was a dot on the clouds,
And -- at last and at last --
-- God -- the sky was filled with armies....Read more of this...

There was a Child Once

by Katherine Mansfield
 There was a child once.
He came to play in my garden;
He was quite pale and silent.
Only when he smiled I knew everything about him,
I knew what he had in his pockets,
And I knew the feel of his hands in my hands
And the most intimate tones of his voice.
I led him down each secret path,
Showing him the hiding-place of all...Read more of this...

On Sitting Down To Read King Lear Once Again

by John Keats
 O golden-tongued Romance with serene lute!
 Fair plumed Syren! Queen of far away!
 Leave melodizing on this wintry day,
Shut up thine olden pages, and be mute:
Adieu! for once again the fierce dispute,
 Betwixt damnation and impassion'd clay
 Must I burn through; once more humbly assay
The bitter-sweet of this Shakespearian fruit.
Chief Poet! and ye clouds of Albion,
 Begetters of our...Read more of this...

It once happened

by Kobayashi Issa
 It once happened
that a child was spared punishment
through earnest solicitation....Read more of this...

Once I saw mountains angry

by Stephen Crane
 Once I saw mountains angry,
And ranged in battle-front.
Against them stood a little man;
Aye, he was no bigger than my finger.
I laughed, and spoke to one near me,
"Will he prevail?"
"Surely," replied this other;
"His grandfathers beat them many times."
Then did I see much virtue in grandfathers --
At least, for the little man
Who stood against the mountains....Read more of this...

The Whole of it came not at once --

by Emily Dickinson
 The Whole of it came not at once --
'Twas Murder by degrees --
A Thrust -- and then for Life a chance --
The Bliss to cauterize --

The Cat reprieves the Mouse
She eases from her teeth
Just long enough for Hope to tease --
Then mashes it to death --

'Tis Life's award -- to die --
Contenteder if once --
Than dying half -- then...Read more of this...

Once there was a man

by Stephen Crane
 Once there was a man --
Oh, so wise!
In all drink
He detected the bitter,
And in all touch
He found the sting.
At last he cried thus:
"There is nothing --
No life,
No joy,
No pain --
There is nothing save opinion,
And opinion be damned."...Read more of this...

This jug did once, like me, love's sorrows taste,

by Omar Khayyam
This jug did once, like me, love's sorrows taste,
And bonds of beauty's tresses once embraced,
This handle, which you see upon its side,
Has many a time twined round a slender waist!...Read more of this...

V was a Villain once

by Edward Lear
V  was a Villain; onceHe stole a piece of beef. Papa he said, "Oh, dreadful man!That Villain is a Thief!" ...Read more of this...

As Once The Winged Energy Of Delight

by Rainer Maria Rilke
 As once the winged energy of delight
carried you over childhood's dark abysses,
now beyond your own life build the great
arch of unimagined bridges.

Wonders happen if we can succeed
in passing through the harshest danger;
but only in a bright and purely granted
achievement can we realize the wonder.

To work with Things in the indescribable
relationship is not too hard for us;
the pattern grows more...Read more of this...

Once By The Pacific

by Robert Frost
 The shattered water made a misty din.
Great waves looked over others coming in,
And thought of doing something to the shore
That water never did to land before.
The clouds were low and hairy in the skies,
Like locks blown forward in the gleam of eyes.
You could not tell, and yet it looked as if
The shore was lucky in being backed by cliff,
The...Read more of this...

Do You Remember Once . .

by Alan Seeger
 Do you remember once, in Paris of glad faces, 
The night we wandered off under the third moon's rays 
And, leaving far behind bright streets and busy places, 
Stood where the Seine flowed down between its quiet quais? 


The city's voice was hushed; the placid, lustrous waters 
Mirrored the walls across where orange windows burned. 
Out of the starry...Read more of this...

Once I was sailing for fun (Simple Verses XII)

by José Martí
Once I was sailing for fun
On a lake of great allure,
Like gold the sun shone so pure,
And my soul more than the sun.

Then suddenly I could smell 
Before I saw at my feet,
A foul fish, with death replete, 
At the bottom of the well
...Read more of this...

The ocean said to me once

by Stephen Crane
 The ocean said to me once,
"Look!
Yonder on the shore
Is a woman, weeping.
I have watched her.
Go you and tell her this --
Her lover I have laid
In cool green hall.
There is wealth of golden sand
And pillars, coral-red;
Two white fish stand guard at his bier.

"Tell her this
And more --
That the king of the seas
Weeps too, old, helpless man.
The bustling fates
Heap his hands...Read more of this...

Once and again my soul did me implore,

by Omar Khayyam
Once and again my soul did me implore,
To teach her, if I might, the heavenly lore;
I bade her learn the Alif well by heart.
Who knows that letter well need learn no more....Read more of this...

O Friends! meet together (after my death). Once reunited,

by Omar Khayyam
O Friends! meet together [after my death]. Once reunited,
rejoice in being together and, when the cupbearer
takes in his hand a cup of old wine, remember poor
Khayyam and drink to his memory.
327...Read more of this...

Morning that comes but once

by Emily Dickinson
 Morning that comes but once,
Considers coming twice --
Two Dawns upon a single Morn,
Make Life a sudden price....Read more of this...

If you refuse me once and think again

by Sir John Suckling
 If you refuse me once, and think again,
I will complain.
You are deceiv'd, love is no work of art,
It must be got and born,
Not made and worn,
By every one that hath a heart.

Or do you think they more than once can die,
Whom you deny?
Who tell you of a thousand deaths a day,
Like the old poets feign
And tell the pain
They met,...Read more of this...

The Loving One Once More

by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
 WHY do I o'er my paper once more bend?

Ask not too closely, dearest one, I pray

For, to speak truth, I've nothing now to say;
Yet to thy hands at length 'twill come, dear friend.

Since I can come not with it, what I send

My undivided heart shall now convey,

With all its joys, hopes, pleasures, pains, to-day:
All this hath no beginning, hath...Read more of this...

It troubled me as once I was --

by Emily Dickinson
 It troubled me as once I was --
For I was once a Child --
Concluding how an Atom -- fell --
And yet the Heavens -- held --

The Heavens weighed the most -- by far --
Yet Blue -- and solid -- stood --
Without a Bolt -- that I could prove --
Would Giants -- understand?

Life set me larger -- problems --
Some I...Read more of this...

The Harp That Once Through Taras Halls

by Thomas Moore
 The harp that once through Tara's halls 
The soul of music shed, 
Now hangs as mute on Tara's walls, 
As if that soul were fled. -- 
So sleeps the pride of former days, 
So glory's thrill is o'er, 
And hearts, that once beat high for praise, 
Now feel that pulse no more. 

No more to chiefs and ladies bright...Read more of this...

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