I SAW from the beach, when the morning was shining, A bark o'er the waters move gloriously on; I came when the sun o'er that beach was declining, The bark was still there, but the waters were gone. And such is the fate of our life's early promise, So passing the spring-tide of joy we have known; Each wave, that we danced on at morning, ebbs from us, And leaves us, at eve, on the bleak shore alone. Ne'er tell me of glories serenely adorning The close of our day, the calm eve of our night: -- Give me back, give me back the wild freshness of Morning, Her clouds and her tears are worth Evening's best light. Oh, who would not welcome that moment's returning, When passion first waked a new life through his frame, And his soul -- like the wood that grows precious in burning -- Gave out all its sweets to love's exquisite flame! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...TO W.P.: 1 by GEORGE SANTAYANA A SHROPSHIRE LAD: 21. BREDON HILL by ALFRED EDWARD HOUSMAN ODES: BOOK 1: ODE 4. AFFECTED INDIFFERENCE by MARK AKENSIDE THE VIGILANTES by MARGARET ELIZA ASHMUN CRICKET ON THE HEARTH by PIERRE JEAN DE BERANGER SMALL THINGS by BERENICE K. BOSS THE BRAES O' BALLOCHMYLE by ROBERT BURNS HE WHO LOSETH HIS LIFE SHALL FIND IT by RICHARD EUGENE BURTON |