Oh! say not thou art all alone
Upon this wide, cold-hearted earth;
Sigh not o'er joys for ever flown,
The vacant chair - the silent hearth:
Why should the world's unholy mirth
Upon thy quiet dreams intrude,
To scare those shapes of heavenly birth
That people oft thy solitude?
Though many a fervant hope of youth
Hath pass'd, and scarcely left a trace; -
Though earth-born love, its tears and truth,
No longer in thy heart have place:
Nor time, nor grief, can e'er efface
The brighter hopes that now are thine, -
The fadeless love, - all-pitying grace,
That makes thy darkest hours divine!
Not all alone - for thou canst hold
Communion sweet, with saint and sage,
And gather gems of price untold,
From many a pure untravell'd page:-
Youth's dreams, the golden light of age,
The poet's lore, - are still thine own:
Then while such themes thy thoughts engage,
Oh, how canst thou be all alone?
Not all alone: the lark's rich note,
As mounting up to heaven she sings;
The thousand silvery sounds that float
Above - below - on morning's wings;
The softer murmurs twilight brings, -
The cricket's chirp, cicala's glee: -
All earth - that lyre of myriad strings -
Is jubilant with life for thee!
Not all alone: the whispering trees,
The rippling brook, the starry sky,
Have each peculiar harmonies,
To soothe, subdue, and sanctify:
The low, sweet breath of evening's sigh,
For thee hath oft a friendly tone,
To lift thy grateful thoughts on high,-
To say, thou art not all alone!
Not all alone: a watchful eye,
That notes the wandering sparrow's fall:
A saving hand is ever nigh,
A gracious Power attends thy call.
When sadness holds thy heart in thrall,
Is oft His tenderest mercy shown:
Seek, then, the balm vouchsafed to all,
And thou canst never be Alone.
