The Winds Of Time
O the winds of time sweep the lonely years
Like withered leaves down the path of night,
And their notes, like a dirge, sound in our ears
As our eyes are strained for a glimpse of light.
And our sad heart utters a voiceless prayer -
Whence do ye come - ye bitter winds,
Where do ye go - O where?
Through the swarming suns where the Zodiac’s blaze
Fades out in the awful deeps of space,
As you hurry us on your unknown ways,
Shall our feet leave never a trace?
Rushed from the light to the silent dark,
Tell us, tell us, O mocking winds
Is there a voice - O hark!
And the wondrous things we planned to do
In those far off days when our hearts were young.
But the task was long and the hours were few
And the songs we dreamed of are still unsung.
Will our hopes fade out when the light is gone?
Whisper, whisper, O pitiless winds,
Is there another dawn?
Where are the friends that we used to know?
Like the fallen leaves gone one by one.
And the scenes that we loved in the long ago
Faint shadows still in the setting sun.
They have gone - we go - for the wild winds rave -
“The path that ye tread in silent dread
Leads on to an open grave!”
But those voices hushed, they linger yet
Like the haunting chords of a lost refrain.
And those scenes we can see with a sweet regret
Though their outlines are blurred they still remain
Shall they live - those things - in our groping brain,
Like the ocean’s surge in an empty shell
Nor live elsewhere again?