Edgar Allan Poe
All hurriedly she knelt upon a bed,
Upon the quiet mountain top.
For her the fair and debonair,
For her this rhyme is penned.
And in thine eye a kindling light,
The agate lamp within thy hand.
So sweet the hour, so calm the time,
The night, though clear, shall frown.
Than that colder, lowly light,
When the hours flew brightly by,
Than to love and be loved by me.
And thus the words were spoken,
By him who, as he pens them, thrills to think,
How often we forget all time, when lone,
In dreams of thee; and therein knows
A soul that knew it well.
Only this, and nothing more.
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This form of poetry is called a Cento. It uses lines from poems by another poet, in this case Edgar Allan Poe, to create a poem. I do hope that he will forgive me and take back the raven now perched above the chamber door. The following is a list of the Poe poems as the lines were used from first to last “In dreams of thee.”
Al Aaraaf
The Sleeper
Lenor
A Valentine
Song
To Helen
Serenade
Spirit of the dead
Evening Star
Hymn
Annabel Lee
The Bridal Ballad
To Marie Louise (Shew)
Stanzas
To One Departed
The Happiest Day
The Raven
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Donald Harbour Poetry 
I love what you did with these Poe lines, Donald. I especially liked the ending!
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I like what I’ve read of Poe and I really need to read more of him. Your poem reminded me of this.
And it’s absolutely gorgeous! I love how you pulled these lines out of context and fashioned them back together. This piece flows well.
-Nicole
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I felt Poe the entire way through,
and something else that must be you.
You done good.
~Brenda
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Well done! Well done! I’m delighted to see someone choose Poe. You’ve arranged your chosen lines well. I felt the flow of the tale clearly.
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Donald, I must admit to not liking Poe, but I very much like what you’ve done with his lines. I wouldn’t know it was a cento, it holds together so well.
Richard
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Sweetly, beautifully laced and drawn here Donald. Good service you’ve done to words and work rendered herein. And yes, it seems a seamless voice. Nicely done.
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So romantic, Donald. Old world and romantic in a “only this and nothing more” kind of way.
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