Ecclesiastical Sonnets - Part I. - XXI - Seclusion
Lance, shield, and sword relinquished, at his side A bead-roll, in his hand a clasped book, Or staff more harmless than a shepherd's crook, The war-worn Chieftain quits the world to hide His thin autumnal locks where Monks abide In cloistered privacy. But not to dwell In soft repose he comes: within his cell, Round the decaying trunk of human pride, At morn, and eve, and midnight's silent hour, Do penitential cogitations cling; Like ivy, round some ancient elm, they twine In grisly folds and strictures serpentine; Yet, while they strangle, a fair growth they bring, For recompense, their own perennial bower.
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"Lance, shield, and sword relinquished, at his side..."
"Ecclesiastical Sonnets - Part I. - XXI - Seclusion" is a quintessential example of William Wordsworth's signature style... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...