First day of  spring--beauty hidden,
Dressed in matted leaves,
Shabby grasses, browns and greens,
And sand that lies along the street--
I love you most of all,
For at your feet
The days of spring and summer
Stretch further than they ever will.
I love you with a love that clings
Like snowflakes in a sudden squall
To branches with a passion pure,
Turn the world into a bride
Then melt away in warming air.
I love your hair
That comes straight down
Like raindrops in a shower
And your footsteps when I hear them
Dripping from the eaves.  
I love you more than flowers in May,
More than some hot summer day--
So soon you come, so soon you've gone--
An old man wishes you could stay on.