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Tabb’s Poetry XXXII

The Bubble

A momentary miracle,
   Wherein Eternal Light,
A child among His children still,
   Forgets the Infinite,
Among His toys to multiply
The larger bubble of the sky.

Vestiges

Upon the Isle of Time we trace
The signs of many a vanished race:
But on the sea that laps it round,
No memory of man is found.

The Sea Bubble

Yea; a bubble though I be,
   Love, O man, that fashioned thee
   Of the dust, created me
Not of earth, but of the sea:
Kindred blossoms then are we—
Time-blooms on eternity.

Adrift

The calm horizon circles only me,
The center of its measureless embrace—
A bubble on the bosom of the sea,
Itself a bubble in the bound of space.

Fancy

A boat unmoored, wherein a dreamer lies,
   The slumberous waves low-lisping of a land
Where Love, forever with unclouded eyes,
   Goes, wed with wandering Music, hand in hand.

John B. Tabb

For a recitation, click the play button:

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/103786155″ params=”” width=” 100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

“The Bubble”: Later Lyrics, p. 37; Poetry, p. 161. October 1891.

“Vestiges”: Lyrics, p. 161; Poetry, p. 366. 1897.

“The Sea Bubble”: Lyrics, p. 44; Poetry, p. 134. December 1892.

“Adrift”: Lyrics, p. 159; Poetry, p. 353. December 1895.

“Fancy”: Lyrics, p. 151; Poetry, p. 364. 1897. Slumberous is sleepy or drowsy.


A convert to the Catholic faith, Rev. John Banister Tabb (1845-1909) was a priest of the Diocese of Richmond, Virginia, and Professor of English at St. Charles’ College, Ellicott City, Maryland. Poems selected, arranged, and annotated by E.L. Core.
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