Classic Poem

Body to body, soul to soul — in vain!
Alas! thou art not one whit less alone;
And heart and heart so close together grown
With many a twisted bond of joy and pain,
Are even as stars about the vast domain
Of heaven's eternal silence thinly strown;
Thou canst not make thy lover's self thine own;
Alone thou art, alone thou must remain.

O human hearts that impotently yearn!
O mortals racked by infinite desire!
Dull earthly coals aglow with lambent fire!
Poor souls, you are at school; and will you learn?
It was a spark from heaven that lit the flame
That burns towards the source from whence it came.