Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE MESSAGE TO THE DEAD, by FELICIA DOROTHEA HEMANS


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE MESSAGE TO THE DEAD, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Thou'rt passing hence, my brother!
Last Line: Ere long, with them and thee!
Alternate Author Name(s): Browne, Felicia Dorothea
Subject(s): Immortality


THOU'RT passing hence, my brother!
Oh! my earliest friend, farewell!
Thou'rt leaving me, without thy voice,
In a lonely home to dwell;
And from the hills, and from the hearth,
And from the household tree,
With thee departs the lingering mirth,
The brightness goes with thee.

But thou, my friend, my brother!
Thou'rt speeding to the shore
Where the dirge-like tone of parting words
Shall smite the soul no more!
And thou wilt see our holy dead,
The lost on earth and main:
Into the sheaf of kindred hearts
Thou wilt be bound again!

Tell, then, our friend of boyhood,
That yet his name is heard
On the blue mountains, whence his youth
Passed like a swift bright bird.
The light of his exulting brow,
The vision of his glee,
Are on me still -- oh! still I trust
That smile again to see.
And tell our fair young sister,
The rose cut down in spring,
That yet my gushing soul is filled
With lays she loved to sing.
Her soft deep eyes look through in dreams,
Tender and sadly sweet; --
Tell her my heart within me burns
Once more that gaze to meet.

And tell our white-haired father,
That in the paths he trode,
The child he loved, the last on earth,
Yet walks and worships God.
Say, that his last fond blessing yet
Rests on my soul like dew,
And by its hallowing might I trust
Once more his face to view.

And tell our gentle mother,
That on her grave I pour
The sorrows of my spirit forth,
As on her breast of yore.
Happy thou art that soon, how soon,
Our good and bright will see! --
Oh! brother, brother! may I dwell,
Ere long, with them and thee!





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