Once more I watch the crystal stream I watched in days gone by; Once more its waves reflect the gleam Of Autumn's sunset sky; Again its banks of gold and green Seem bursting into flame, -- And yet for me the lovely scene Can never be the same. The waves that gleamed here long ago Have reached a distant sea; The leaves of that first autumn glow Have fallen from the tree; The birds which charmed me with their song Have long since elsewhere flown, And I amid a careless throng Am standing here alone. This sparkling flood can never quite Replace the stream of old; These radiant leaves, however bright, Wear not the old-time gold; For evening's light can ne'er retain The splendor of the dawn, And naught, alas, can bring again The faces that are gone. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE GIANTS OF HISTORY by JAMES GALVIN SELF-ANALYSIS by DAVID IGNATOW THE RIVALS by JAMES WELDON JOHNSON HOUSE WITH THE MARBLE STEPS by AMY LOWELL LITTLE BROTHER'S STORY by KATHERINE MANSFIELD THE BLACK MONKEY by KATHERINE MANSFIELD |