Poems

Poems List

Explore poems from our collection

Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Sailor Son

Sailor Son

When you come home I'll not be round
To welcome you.

They'll take you to a grassy mound
So neat and new;

228
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Ruins

Ruins


Ruins in Rome are four a penny,
And here along the Appian Way
I see the monuments of many
Esteemed almighty in their day. .…

235
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Rose Leaves

Rose Leaves

When they shall close my careless eyes
And look their last upon my face,
I fear that some will say: "her lies

A man o…

226
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Roulette

Roulette


I'll wait until my money's gone
Before I take the sleeping pills;
Then when they find me in the dawn,
Remote from earthl…

277
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Room 7: The Coco-Fiend

Room 7: The Coco-Fiend

I look at no one, me;
I pass them on the stair;
Shadows! I don't see;
Shadows! everywhere.
Haunting, taunt…

180
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Room 5: The Concert Singer

Room 5: The Concert Singer

I'm one of these haphazard chaps
Who sit in cafes drinking;
A most improper taste, perhaps,
Yet pleasant, to m…

175
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Ripeness

Ripeness


With peace and rest
And wisdom sage,
Ripeness is best
Of every age.
With hands that fold
In pensive pray…

195
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Romance

Romance


In Paris on a morn of May
I sent a radio transalantic
To catch a steamer on the way,
But oh the postal fuss was frantic; …

265
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Rhyme For My Tomb

Rhyme For My Tomb

Here lyeth one
Who loved the sun;
Who lived with zest,
Whose work was done,
Reward, dear Lord,
Thy wear…

237
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Rich Poor Man

Rich Poor Man

We pitied him because
He lived alone;
His tiny cottage was
His only own.
His little garden had
A wall aroun…

210
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Reverence

Reverence


I saw the Greatest Man on Earth,
Aye, saw him with my proper eyes.
A loin-cloth spanned his proper girth,
But he was na…

170
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Retired

Retired


I used to sing, when I was young,
The joy of idleness;
But now I'm grey I hold my tongue,
For frankly I confess
I…

259
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Repentance

Repentance


"If you repent," the Parson said,"
Your sins will be forgiven.
Aye, even on your dying bed
You're not too late for hea…

196
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Resignation

Resignation


I'd hate to be centipede (of legs I've only two),
For if new trousers I should need (as oftentimes I do),
The bill would come…

219
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Regret

Regret


It's not for laws I've broken
That bitter tears I've wept,
But solemn vows I've spoken
And promises unkept;
It's n…

265
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Relax

Relax


Do you recall that happy bike
With bundles on our backs?
How near to heaven it was like
To blissfully relax!
In cos…

218
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Quatrains

Quatrains


One said: Thy life is thine to make or mar,
To flicker feebly, or to soar, a star;
It lies with thee -- the choice is thine, is…

224
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Raising The Flag

Raising The Flag

Behold! the Spanish flag they're raising
Before the Palace courtyard gate;
To watch its progress bold and blazing
Two hu…

235
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Property

Property


The red-roofed house of dream design
Looks three ways on the sea;

For fifty years I've made it mine,
And held it…

274
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Procreation

Procreation


It hurts my pride that I should be
The issue of a night of lust;
Yet even Bishops, you'll agree,
Obey the biologic 'm…

253
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Priscilla

Priscilla


Jerry MacMullen, the millionaire,
Driving a red-meat bus out there --
How did he win his Croix de Guerre?
Bless you, tha…

306
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Prelude

Prelude


To smite Apollo's lyre I am unable;
Of loveliness, alas! I cannot sing.
My lot it i, across the tavern table,
To start a …

197
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Portrait

Portrait


Because life's passing show
Is little to his mind,
There is a man I know
Indrawn from human kind.
His dearest fr…

208
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Pragmatic

Pragmatic


When young I was an Atheist,
Yea, pompous as a pigeon
No opportunity I missed
To satirize religion.

I s…

213