 | The Poetical Works of Aubrey De Vere |  |
IX.
Love is historic; rests upon the past;Still lingers lovingly on old detail;
Still, like the holy bells, rings out a tale
For ever new, from earliest to last:
Love is prophetic; climbing still the mast
Discerns of distant hope the signal pale,
And on the straining spar extends the sail
Withheld by colder counsels from the blast.
Mysterious delight in what is lost!
Wild half fruition of what may be won
By struggling perseverance, tempest-toss'd!
Yet love in silence wrapt and deep repose,
Whilst one short hour its hasty course can run,
May find more joy than many a lifetime knows!
| The Poetical Works of Aubrey De Vere | |