THOU mayst be manly an thou wilt. Go! clench thy hilt, and brave the squall Where on the peaks the whirlwind shrieks, and chase the wild stag till he fall. Get thee to battle! Brows are bright on those that fight. Win food and sleep In fast and toil. Go! share the spoil with smugglers on the mountain steep! But in our soulless city ways, the barren days will wear thee down, Where tears but suit a griefless mute, and mirth but masks a weeping clown. As fountain spray but surges up to brim the cup of pools below, A watery plume it is our doom to waver ever to and fro,— Unstable wills by sloth worn out that shift about, and know no peace, Who in despair breathe living air and shrink in dread from death's release. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...AFTER TU FU (THEY SAY YOU'RE STAYING IN A MOUNTAIN TEMPLE) by MARVIN BELL YOU KNOW WHAT PEOPLE SAY by JAMES GALVIN THE STRAPLESS by KAREN SWENSON FOR LAUREL AND HARDY ON MY WORKROOM WALL by DAVID WAGONER HEALALL by WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS |