Shapes of Clay

by Ambrose Bierce

AN AUGURY

AN AUGURY.

Upon my desk a single spray,
With starry blossoms fraught.
I write in many an idle way,
Thinking one serious thought.

"O flowers, a fine Greek name ye bear,
And with a fine Greek grace."
Be still, O heart, that turns to share
The sunshine of a face.

"Have ye no messages--no brief,
Still sign: 'Despair', or 'Hope'?"
A sudden stir of stem and leaf--
A breath of heliotrope!