One by one they have slipped from Earth, And vanished into the depths of space, And I, beside my lonely hearth, Find none to take their place. Never a word of fond farewell Fell from their lips ere they were gone; Never a hint since then to tell If after night came dawn! Latest of all to thus depart, Still is thy hand-clasp warm in mine; Wilt thou not tell me where thou art? Canst thou impart no sign? Wild are the winds above thy grave; Cold is the form I loved so well; But what to thee are storms that rave, Or the snow that last night fell? Out in the awful void of night, Numberless suns and planets roll; Has one of all those isles of light Received thy homeless soul? Mute is the sky as an empty tomb; Trackless the path, and all unknown; What means this journey through its gloom, Which each must make alone? Vain is the task; I strive no more To learn the secret of their fate; Till sounds for me the muffled oar, I can but hope and wait. But well I know they have gone from me Into the silent depths of space, Across a vast, uncharted sea, Whose shores I cannot trace. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...DRIVING INTO LARAMIE by JAMES GALVIN RETURN (1) by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON SPOON RIVER ANTHOLOGY: REV. LEMUEL WILEY by EDGAR LEE MASTERS IMPRESSIONS OF FRANCOIS-MARIE AROUET (DE VOLTAIRE) by EZRA POUND DECEPTION PASS; FOR JUDY AND MARK KAWASAKI by KAREN SWENSON |