GIVE me the loveliness that is undying: The comrade look of welcome in mine eyes, The echo in my spirit for the sighing Of every broken soul beneath the skies, The healing in my voice for pain or sorrow, The beating in my heart for grief or love, The open hand for all who come to borrow, The judgment that is tempered from above. Give me the deeper mind of understanding: The feet that know the course and will not swerve, The courage for the sceptre of commanding, The humble heart contented but to serve. Then come Old Age to crown my life's adventure; Come wrinkles -- I will wear them without tears: My blood I'll pour with joy to sate the Quencher; My flesh I'll give to feed the hungry Years -- But when the gulls are high in heaven flying, And all my waning hours are white with snow, Give me the loveliness that is undying, And I will let all other beauty go. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...TRANSPOSITIONS by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON A GUY I KNOW ON 47TH AND COTTAGE by CLARENCE MAJOR PLAINT OF THE DISGUSTED BRITON IN THE STATES by GEORGE SANTAYANA ISADORA DUNCAN DANCING 'IPHIGENIA IN AULIS' by LOUIS UNTERMEYER |