God made a little Gentian

by Emily Dickinson

God made a little Gentian —
It tried — to be a Rose —
And failed — and all the Summer laughed —
But just before the Snows

There came a Purple Creature —
That ravished all the Hill —
And Summer hid her forehead —
And Mockery — was still —

The Frosts were her condition —
The Tyrian would not come
Until the North — invoke it —
Creator — Shall I — bloom?


Monadnock Valley Press > Dickinson