"What lips my lips have kissed" by Edna St. Vincent Millay

"What lips my lips have kissed" by Edna St. Vincent Millay

From Lucky Words by Jeffrey Windsor

March 6, 2026 · 7 min

About this episode

This episode features a reading and analysis of Edna St. Vincent Millay's sonnet 'What lips my lips have kissed', exploring themes of love, memory, and aging.

Howdy! Another audio-first production, this time a sonnet by the fabulous 20th century poet Edna St. Vincent Millay. This one was recorded on a hike up Provo Canyon (yes, again—hey, it’s just up the street and, frankly, it’s a pretty great canyon) shortly before we finally (!) got some snow. What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why, I have forgotten, and what arms have lain Under my head till morning; but the rain Is full of ghosts tonight, that tap and sigh Upon the glass and listen for reply, And in my heart there stirs a quiet pain For unremembered lads that not again Will turn to me at midnight with a cry. Thus in the winter stands the lonely tree, Nor knows what birds have vanished one by one, Yet knows its boughs more silent than before: I cannot say what loves have come and gone, I only know that summer sang in me A little while, that in me sings no more. As I mention in the audio, there’s much to love about this poem. Mostly for me, it’s wonderful because it’s a love poem to herself . All sonnets are love poems, or they contain the echo of a love poem. In this poem, Milay is longing for the woman she used to be. The men in this poem? They’re forgotten. They have…

People in this episode

Host: Jeff

Topics covered

  • poetry
  • aging
  • self-reflection

Keywords

  • Edna St. Vincent Millay
  • sonnet
  • Provo Canyon
  • love poem

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Lucky Words

Places: Provo Canyon

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