A Valentine
F
or her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes,
B
r
ightly expressive as the twins of Leda,
Sh
a
ll find her own sweet name, that nestling lies
Upo
n
the page, enwrapped from every reader.
Sear
c
h narrowly the lines!- they hold a treasure
Divin
e
- a talisman- an amulet
That mu
s
t be worn at heart. Search well the measure-
The word
s
- the syllables! Do not forget
The trivi
a
lest point, or you may lose your labor
And yet the
r
e is in this no Gordian knot
Which one mi
g
ht not undo without a sabre,
If one could m
e
rely comprehend the plot.
Enwritten upo
n
the leaf where now are peering
Eyes scintilla
t
ing soul, there lie perdus
Three eloquent w
o
rds oft uttered in the hearing
Of poets, by poets- a
s
the name is a poet's, too,
Its letters, althou
g
h naturally lying
Like the knight Pint
o
- Mendez Ferdinando-
Still form a synonym f
o
r Truth- Cease trying!
You will not read the ri
d
dle, though you do the best you can do.
The difficulty of writing a standard acrostic is here compounded by putting the first letter in the first place on the first line, the second letter in the second place on the second line and so on until the 20th letter is in the 20th place on the 20th line.poem form:- AcrosticThe ladies name is easy to find but readers are invited to solve the puzzle of the three words that Poe also includes.
