Annabel Lee

It took me several days, a couple of rides, and some serious pondering, but I have named the lovely Raleigh Lady Sports. Her name is Annabel Lee.

Annabel Lee at the market

For anyone familiar with Edgar Allan Poe's Annabel Lee, you may think that I am jinxing myself with naming her as such, but I think it is one of my top three favorites by Poe, and beyond it being a favorite, who doesn't enjoy a good tragic love story? For any unfamiliar with the tale, here it is for your reading pleasure.


It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea;
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me-
Yes!- that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we-
Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.

For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea. 

- Edgar Allan Poe

As a little piece of personal trivia on this specific Poe work, I actually recited it for an audition to be valedictorian of my graduating junior high school class. Surprisingly, I was selected by the committee; however, I was completely terrified to give a speech in front of so many people and decided to decline, giving someone else the opportunity instead. 

I'm very excited that the Raleigh now has a name, and I think it's a great one. I look forward to riding her for many years to come (and let's hope that her name isn't some sort of bad ju-ju on our relationship)!