Ottie Graham (Ottie Beatrice Graham), "Futility" (1924)
If I were a doe in a forest deep,
I could lift my soft brown eyes to weep,
Weep silent, crystal tears.
At a still, cool pool 'neath some woodbird's nest,
I could pause and drink and bathe and rest,
Rest in a sad, sweet peace.
But I'm not a doe in a forest deep;
Here soft brown eyes must smile, not weep,
And the pool is far away.
Published in The Messenger, May 1924