The Braes O' Ballochmyle
written in 1785
The Braes O' Ballochmyle - context Summary
Departure from Ballochmyle
Written in 1785, the poem records Robert Burns’s feeling of parting and nostalgia connected to leaving the Ballochmyle area. Nature imagery—yellow woods, fading flowers, silent larks—reflects a season of decline even as the speaker recalls Maria singing in beauty. The poem contrasts the natural cycle, which will renew, with the speaker’s sense that he will not return: flowers and birds may flourish again, but he must say a permanent farewell to the bonnie banks of Ayr and Ballochmyle. It reads as a personal lament tied to place.
Read Complete AnalysesThe Catrine woods were yellow seen, The flowers decay'd on Catrine lee, Nae lav'rock sang on hillock green, But Nature sicken'd on the e'e. Thro' faded groves Maria sang, Hersel' in beauty's bloom the while; And aye the wild-wood ehoes rang, Fareweel the braes o' Ballochmyle! Low in your wintry beds, ye flowers, Again ye'll flourish fresh and fair; Ye birdies dumb, in with'ring bowers, Again ye'll charm the vocal air. But here, alas! for me nae mair Shall birdie charm, or floweret smile; Fareweel the bonnie banks of Ayr, Fareweel, fareweel! sweet Ballochmyle!
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