Classic Poem

A sudden wail of sorrow across the deep has come,
The brightest gem has faded that lit my distant home.
One beautiful and lovely, to whom my name was given,
With cheeks like summer roses, and eyes as blue as heaven;
And I am grieved to weeping, that one I thought to press,
Soon to this throbbing bosom, with many a sweet caress,
Is laid away in darkness beneath the wasting snow,
No more my smile to answer, no more my love to know,
No more his gentle footfall shall patter on the floor,
No more his call at morning, be heard beside my door.
His vacant chair at table, the bed wherein he lay
And breathed in helpless anguish his little life away,
His garments and the baubles with which he used to play;
All these are sad reminders of one that's gone for aye.
How large the place made vacant, and how severe the blow,
That smote our hearts with anguish, none but ourselves can know.