When soldiers die and kings depart And statesmen pass away, And men of gold in bank and mart Return to common clay, Our laurel wreaths we proudly bring, Our panegyrics blend; But ah, it is a sadder thing When we have lost a friend! When artists lay their palettes down, And singers mutely rest; When builders of a mighty town Lie in a narrow chest, We praise their genius towering tall, Their godlike works commend; But ah, the human tears that fall When we have lost a friend! Too deep for shallow-sounding phrase, Too full for formal bound, Our memories bloom where'er we gaze, And live in every sound. We cannot speak our aching loss, Nor even comprehend; But every byway has a cross When we have lost a friend. A friend is such a blessed boon, To comfort and to cheer; December glows with light of June When any friend is near; And want is plenty, sickness health, And longest sorrows end, When we have found earth's rarest wealth, When we have found a friend. And such was he, this friendly man, This man of sunny mood, Of happiness the artisan, The prince of brotherhood! Oh, heaven is a cheery place Where such as he ascend; Let us go on a little space And we shall find our friend. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...HER EYES by EDWIN ARLINGTON ROBINSON TO A PACIFIST FRIEND by GEORGE SANTAYANA BIRTHDAY OF DANIEL WEBSTER by OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES AFAR IN THE DESERT by THOMAS PRINGLE THE BLOOD HORSE by BRYAN WALLER PROCTER AT TWO-AND-TWENTY by THOMAS BAILEY ALDRICH A SUMMER NIGHT by MATTHEW ARNOLD |