“All
things by immortal power, near or far, to each other linked are, that thou
canst not stir a flower without troubling of a star.”
– Francis Thompson
Thompson, born in Great Britain in December
of 1859, wrote three books of poetry, a number of short stories, and several
essays, including one of the best ever done on poet Percy Bysche Shelley. He was a key influence on writers like J.R.R.
Tolkien and Madeline L’Engle, and penned such famous phrases as “With all
deliberate speed” – used in the U.S. Supreme Court decision on Brown vs. Board
of Education – and “Love is a many-splendored thing,” used as the title for both
a popular movie and a popular hit song in the 1950s. 
For Saturday’s Poem, here is
Thompson’s,
Go,
songs
Go,
songs, for ended is our brief, sweet play;
Go,
children of swift joy and tardy sorrow:
And some are sung, and that was
yesterday,
And
some are unsung, and that may be tomorrow.
Go forth; and if it be o'er stony way,
Old
joy can lend what newer grief must borrow:
And
it was sweet, and that was yesterday,
And
sweet is sweet, though purchased with sorrow.
Go, songs, and come not back from your far way:
And
if men ask you why ye smile and sorrow,
Tell
them ye grieve, for your hearts know Today,
Tell
them ye smile, for your eyes know Tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment