Roman portrait fresco, Pompeii, 1st century AD‘Tullia’ By Jack Hart The Society April 28, 2017 Beauty, Culture, Poetry 9 Comments Yes, I admit I seldom write, Or even think of you, But not, as you suppose, Because there’s someone new, But rather that I do not choose To let you slip away, Or let the passage of a year Seem more than half a day. Because I will not think of you, You cannot leave my mind, And nothing is a memory Until it’s left behind. There is a tale that Tullia, Cicero’s daughter, lay Entombed for fifteen-hundred years Beside the Appian Way, While armies swept across the land, And seasons made their round, Until by some odd circumstance An opening was found. And when the workmen moved the stone, They saw inside the tomb, A lamp still burning with a light The years could not consume. And by that light they glimpsed a form Too beautiful for lust. And then before a man could speak, It crumbled into dust. Jack Hart is a professor at the University of Rio Grande, in Ohio. NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. Trending now: 9 Responses Amy Foreman April 29, 2017 Beautiful! Reply Florence April 29, 2017 A very lovely poem. Your Tullia becomes a metaphor for memory when she turns to dust and evokes that closing Aha! Well done with simplicity and intention. Thank you. Reply Dona Fox April 29, 2017 Enchanting! Reply Sally Cook April 29, 2017 Buried beneath the back and forth of daily life, Tullia lay. The symbolism of the story is a theme made for a poem. Even though current fashion is to be crass and shallow, we all keep such lamps within our hearts, and their light refuses to lie snuffed and trampled by current rules anti-mores.. Reply CAROL HERRING April 29, 2017 A delightful poem! Carol Ann Herring Reply David Watt April 29, 2017 A beautiful poem in which every word and syllable counts. Reply Jack Hart May 1, 2017 Thank all of you for the kind comments. The subject of the poem is real, as is the story (at least more or less). I do have to be a little skeptical about the literal accuracy of the lamp still burning. But of course I wasn’t there, so who knows . . . Jack Hart Reply David Hollywood May 2, 2017 Terrific poem. Reply Wendy Bourke May 3, 2017 Lovely words, beautifully rendered – the rhyme and cadence … wonderfully done. Awesome writing! A pleasure to read! Reply Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Florence April 29, 2017 A very lovely poem. Your Tullia becomes a metaphor for memory when she turns to dust and evokes that closing Aha! Well done with simplicity and intention. Thank you. Reply
Sally Cook April 29, 2017 Buried beneath the back and forth of daily life, Tullia lay. The symbolism of the story is a theme made for a poem. Even though current fashion is to be crass and shallow, we all keep such lamps within our hearts, and their light refuses to lie snuffed and trampled by current rules anti-mores.. Reply
Jack Hart May 1, 2017 Thank all of you for the kind comments. The subject of the poem is real, as is the story (at least more or less). I do have to be a little skeptical about the literal accuracy of the lamp still burning. But of course I wasn’t there, so who knows . . . Jack Hart Reply
Wendy Bourke May 3, 2017 Lovely words, beautifully rendered – the rhyme and cadence … wonderfully done. Awesome writing! A pleasure to read! Reply
