I saw her bright reflection And far in the hazy distance Among the long black rafters The wavering shadows lay, And the current that came from the ocean Seemed to lift and bear them away; As, sweeping and eddying through them, And streaming into the moonlight, And like those waters rushing How often, oh, how often, In the days that had gone by, How often, oh, how often, I had wished that the ebbing tide Would bear me away on its bosom O'er the ocean wild and wide! For my heart was hot and restless, And my life was full of care, And the burden laid upon me Seemed greater than I could bear. But now it has fallen from me, Yet whenever I cross the river And I think how many thousands Each bearing his burden of sorrow, I see the long procession Still passing to and fro, The young heart hot and restless, And forever and forever, As long as the river flows, As long as the heart has passions, The moon and its broken reflection THE REAPER AND THE FLOWERS THERE HENRY W. LONGFELLOW HERE is a reaper whose name is Death, He reaps the bearded grain at a breath, "Shall I have nought that is fair!" saith he : He gazed at the flowers with tearful eyes, He kissed their drooping leaves; It was for the Lord of Paradise He bound them in his sheaves. "My Lord has need of these flowerets gay," Where he was once a child. "They shall all bloom in fields of light, And saints, upon their garments white, And the mother gave, in tears and pain, Oh, not in cruelty, not in wrath, 'Twas an angel visited the green earth, A PSALM OF LIFE HENRY W. LONGFELLOW ELL me not, in mournful numbers, TELL "Life is but an empty dream!" Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, Art is long, and Time is fleeting, And our hearts, though stout and brave, Still, like muffled drums, are beating Funeral marches to the grave. In the world's broad field of battle, Be not like dumb, driven cattle. Trust no Future, howe'er pleasant! Lives of great men all remind us THE BUILDERS HENRY W. LONGFELLOW ALL are architects of Fate, Working in these walls of Time; Some with massive deeds and great, Nothing useless is, or low; Each thing in its place is best ; And what seems but idle show Strengthens and supports the rest. |