RONDELS.
I.
The lilacs are in bloom,
All is that ever was,
And Cupids peep and pass
Through the curtains of the room.
Season of light perfume,
Hide all beneath thy grass.
The lilacs are in bloom,
All is that ever was.
Dead hopes new shapes assume;
Town belle and country lass
Forget the word "Alas,"
For over every tomb
The lilacs are in bloom.
II.
Summer has seen decay
Of roses white and red,
And Love with wings outspread
Speeds after yesterday.
Blue skies have changed to grey,
And joy has sorrow wed:
Summer has seen decay
Of roses white and red.
May's flowers outlast not May;
And when the hour has fled,
Around the roses dead
The mournful echoes say—
Summer has seen decay.
George Moore.