FROM mem'ry's lofty vantage ground Our mental gaze we shift around O'er stretches of the past. We see dim realms of fading glory The trysting place of figures hoary, Whose plaintive accents sound one story: God's world alone doth last. We see the trophies won in strife That graced the triumphs of our life Lie strewn in sad array. Each mould'ring relic wails a strain, The warning dirge of myriads slain Whose echoes roll an old refrain: All earthly must decay. But in this threnody that saddens A message rings that ever gladdens, Ne'er perish soul and name, Though strongest hopes be broken, Yet every good word spoken Remains sweet mem'ry's token Of amaranthine fame. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...CHAMBER MUSIC: 22 by JAMES JOYCE INVITATION TO A PAINTER: 3 by WILLIAM ALLINGHAM CONTRA MORTEM: THE SUMMER by HAYDEN CARRUTH DEVASTATION by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON THE BLACK MAMMY by JAMES WELDON JOHNSON |