Chloris in the Snow / William Strode

Chloris in the Snow

I saw fair Chloris walk alone,
When feather'd rain came softly down,
As Jove descending from his Tower
To court her in a silver shower:
The wanton snow flew to her breast,
Like pretty birds into their nest,
But, overcome with whiteness there,
For grief it thaw'd into a tear:
    Thence falling on her garments' hem,
    To deck her, froze into a gem.

~~
William Strode (1600-1645) 
from the Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250-1900, 1900

[Poem is in the public domain worldwide]

William Strode biography