"THOU SHALT KNOW HEREAFTER."
The wind has ceased—how still and tranquil all!
The ghastly moon still shines upon the wall;
While other eyes are closed why do I weep?
Begone, ye phantoms, welcome, balmy sleep!
And bear me to the shadowy land of dreams
Where yesternight I roamed by crystal streams,
And gathered flowers methought would never fade,
Or talked with angels 'neath the pleasant shade!
It was a dream; ah, yes, and life to me
Was once a dream—smooth as the placid sea
When all is calm, and on its bosom lies
The golden radiance of the summer skies.
There came a storm—the thunder's dreadful roar,
The angry waves that beat against the shore
Awakened me—oh, I had lived too long
In the bright realms of fancy and of song.
Perhaps 'twas well the storm swept o'er the sea,
Perhaps 'twas well the tumult startled me,
'Twas well I learned there's much to do and dare,
Much to be suffered, much to meekly bear,
But when I found the real though unsought,
And thought of life and trembled as I thought,—
When like the leaves in autumn day by day
The hopes I cherished hastened to decay,
And hopeless, helpless in my great despair
I turned to earth but found no solace there,
'Twas well for me that in the darkened skies
I saw the Star of Bethlehem arise!
I know not why, though nature craves to know,
That all my dreams of happiness below
Should be thus blighted, yet the time is near
When I, poor voyager, often shipwrecked here,
Shall reach the port, and safely moored at last
Review the scenes and sufferings of the past,—
Beholding where the shadows darkest lay
The dawning glory of immortal day,
And all along the path that seemed so drear
Leaving this one memorial—God was here!