Classic Poem

TO MRS. ABBY A. FOSTER

Dear friend, thou'rt only out of sight, —
Sweet sister of my soul!
One little stream alone doth now
Between our spirits roll;
One step, — the last, — and I shall greet
Thy cherished smile again;
One pang, — the last, — and I shall know
Again no parting pain.

Unfading as these evergreens
Thy memory shall be;
Unwithering as these amaranths
Our loving thoughts of thee.
Sweet sister! cherished friend! with tears
I place them here to-day:
Thy grave is hallowed ground to me,
Where I may weep and pray.

Oft, in my distant home, I sit,
And live that sabbath o'er,
When by thy side I stood, till thou
Crossed to the shining shore.
And evermore both " bright and fair "
As thine my hope shall be;
For in thy footsteps will I tread,
Safe while I follow thee.

Christ was thy light, thy guide, thy hope;
And thou art with him now,
The palm of victory in thine hand,
The crown upon thy brow.
Yet often art thou still with us;
Thy spirit o'er us bends;
And sweetly dost thou minister
To thine earth-fettered friends.

I hear thy voice at midnight hour,
I hear it oft at noon:
Thou smilest with the morning star,
And with the calm, bright moon.
I never can forget thee — no!
To thee henceforth is given
To blend with all my thoughts of death,
And all my hopes of heaven.

Soon shall we clasp the friendly hand
In those unfading bowers,
Where, as on earth, thou'lt pluck for me
Some earliest, sweetest flowers;
And I shall find our love's strong chain
By death was unclasped never,
Where all we love shall live again,
And part no more forever.