Yet gilds these thighs; my coat, albeit worn,

Still holds its colors fast; albeit torn,

My heart will laugh a little yet, if I

May win of Thee this grace, Lord: on this high

And sacrificial hill ’twixt earth and sky,

To dream still pure all that I loved, and die.

There is no other way to keep secure

My wild chimeras; grave-locked against the lure

Of Truth, the small hard teeth of worms, yet less

Envenomed than the mouth of Truth, will bless