Life (1908)

Life written by William Henry Davies

Nature Poems (1908)

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Alone beneath Heaven's roof I stand;
It is a cold and frosty night;
Big, spider stars, with many legs,
Upon Heaven's ceiling spin in sight;
I hear afar the homeless Wind,
Carrying abroad her wailing child
That, when she hurries faster, screams
The louder and more wild.

Now thoughts of Life make me feel sick;
No other joy on earth, it seems,
Than to pursue our quest for some
False Eldorado of our dreams;
Pale Fear doth like a spider pull,
Sucking my heart; it seems I grow
A man of feathers and light down,
And cold winds through me blow.

For Life seems empty of all worth;
No wisdom in the morning shows
The day its duty; yet each night
Is wise to show us its vain close.
Time's hours are precious - What! To whom?
Is there one man has faith at night
That he has bought true worth with them,
And spent his day aright?

This work is in the public domain in countries where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or less.