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Into my heart’s treasury
I slipped a coin
That time cannot take
Nor a thief purloin,
Oh better than the minting
Of a gold-crowned king
Is the safe-kept memory
Of a lovely thing.
This poem is in the public domain.
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Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933) was a Missouri-born poet afflicted with poor health from birth. She loved one man but married another, divorced, lost her best friend to suicide, and eventually committed suicide herself. Ironically, a majority of her poems are about love and beauty, and she won the first Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1918. There are some similarities to be drawn between Sara and Emily Dickinson; both were reclusive, both wrote intensely personal poetry that frequently focused on nature, both knew unrequited love.
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rpadham:
In December 1979 I watched the School I started in and graduated from burn. Old book pages were found for miles around. As my wife (my high school sweetheart) and I walked home we found a book page in our back yard. This poem alone was on that page.
Posted 08/20/2023 10:21 PM
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Auntiemom57 :
One of the 9th grade poems I had to memorize in 1971. Loved it then, love it now. I hope Ms. Teasdale somehow knows how much joy it has brought over the years to so many who had to learn in it school and have cherished the words for years since.
Posted 07/05/2023 06:28 PM
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Letsroll:
Learned this poem in the 2nd grade. Won over a. Girl with saying it, .said it last night at a Thanksgiving dinner with my sons and wives for a round table thought on what is meaningful to you. They were all appreciative. Tom75-years
Posted 11/24/2022 01:06 PM
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touston:
I too memorized this poem, like jeaniaraye. I don't know why it sticks with me but maybe because of the beauty of the words. I have shared this poem with many people who have lost someone - most recently the funeral of my son in-law's brother. His brother committed suicide - PTSD. Ironic that the poet also committed suicide.
Posted 12/21/2016 09:02 AM
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jeaniaraye:
This is the first poem I ever memorized as a young child. I have carried it in my heart over the years. I am now 71 years of age and can still quote it perfectly.
Posted 10/10/2015 12:36 AM
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dotief@comcast.net:
Love Sara's poetry! Powerful in its simplicity. Wonderful!!!
Posted 11/21/2013 09:32 AM
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KevinArnold:
Oh as an admirer of the concise I'm enthralled. No specifics, just a lovely thing.
Posted 11/21/2013 08:21 AM
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rksanders@charter.net:
This poem is one of the "coins" slipped into my heart when, as a 7th grader, I memorized it.
Posted 11/21/2013 06:35 AM
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TheSilverOne:
Beautiful memories keep us going. This poem, itself, is "a lovely thing".
Posted 11/21/2013 04:22 AM
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