NOT that they bring us labour, pain, and care, Do we turn pale when, ringing in our ears, Is heard the gallop of the hurrying years, And, foot in stirrup, we must onward fare; Through joy and sorrow, death, and many a snare, We seek our goal; not these our courage fears, Nor the hard fighting that great Love endears; But hourly choice that we must swiftly dare: Yea, as we spring to horse, we tremble most Knowing there must be, in the new year's flight, Loved opportunities, seen, longed for, lost, Which, choosing others, choosing at our cost, We shall pass by, and leave far out of sight; Friendships, achievements, deeds, a beckoning host. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...IN THE BERKSHIRE HILLS by LOUIS UNTERMEYER CHILD'S EVENING HYMN by SABINE BARING-GOULD O SLEEP, MY BABE! by SARA COLERIDGE WEEDS by EDNA ST. VINCENT MILLAY A TEAMSTER'S FAREWELL by CARL SANDBURG BY WAY OF EXPLANATION by VIRGINIA A. ALLIN SLEEPING AND WAKING by JANE BARLOW |