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[IX. But unto him came swift calamity]
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207

[IX. But unto him came swift calamity]

But unto him came swift calamity,
In the sweet spring-time, when his beds were green;
And my heart waited, trustfully serene;
For the new blossom on my household-tree.
But flowers, and gods, and quaint Philosophy,
Are poor, in truth, to fill the empty place;
Nor any joy, nor season's jollity,
Can aught, indeed, avail to grace our grief.
Can spring return to him a brother's face?
Or bring my darling back to me,—to me?
Undimmed the May went on with bird and bower;
The summer filled and faded like a flower:
But rainy Autumn and the red-turned leaf
Found us at tears, and wept for company.