| |
| OH! for my bright and faded hours | |
| When life was like a summer stream, | |
| On whose gay banks the virgin flowers | |
| Blush’d in the morning’s rosy beam; | |
| Or danced upon the breeze that bare | 5 |
| Its store of rich perfume along, | |
| While the wood-robin pour’d on air | |
| The ravishing delights of song. | |
| |
| The sun look’d from his lofty cloud, | |
| While flow’d its sparkling waters fair— | 10 |
| And went upon his path-way proud, | |
| And threw a brighter lustre there; | |
| And smiled upon the golden heaven, | |
| And on the earth’s sweet loveliness, | |
| Where light, and joy, and song were given, | 15 |
| The glad and fairy scene to bless! | |
| |
| Ah! these were bright and joyous hours, | |
| When youth awoke from boyhood’s dream, | |
| To see life’s Eden dress’d in flowers, | |
| While young hope bask’d in morning’s beam! | 20 |
| And proffer’d thanks to heaven above, | |
| While glow’d his fond and grateful breast, | |
| Who spread for him that scene of love | |
| And made him so supremely blest! | |
| |
| That scene of love!—where hath it gone? | 25 |
| Where have its charms and beauty sped? | |
| My hours of youth, that o’er me shone— | |
| Where have their light and splendor fled? | |
| Into the silent lapse of years— | |
| And I am left on earth to mourn: | 30 |
| And I am left! to drop my tears | |
| O’er memory’s lone and icy urn! | |
| |
| Yet why pour forth the voice of wail | |
| O’er feeling’s blighted coronal? | |
| Ere many gorgeous suns shall fail, | 35 |
| I shall be gather’d in my pall; | |
| Oh, my dark hours on earth are few— | |
| My hopes are crush’d, my heart is riven;— | |
| And I shall soon bid life adieu, | |
| To seek enduring joys in heaven! | 40 |
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