To live a hero, then to stand In bronze serene above the city's throng; Hero at sea, and now on land Revered by thousands as they rush along. If these were all the gifts of fame— To be a shade amid alert reality, And win a statue and a name— How cold and cheerless immortality! But when the sun shines in the Square, And multitudes are swarming in the street, Children are always gathered there, Laughing and playing round the hero's feet. And in the crisis of the game— With boyish grit and ardor it is played— You'll hear some youngster call his name: "The Admiral—he never was afraid!" And so the hero daily lives, And boys grow braver as the Man they see! The inspiration that he gives Still helps to make them loyal, strong, and free! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE REVENGE; A BALLAD OF THE FLEET by ALFRED TENNYSON AS THE TEAM'S HEAD BRASS by PHILIP EDWARD THOMAS ON THE EPHEMERALNESS OF BEAUTY by FRANKLIN PIERCE ADAMS WITH A COPY OF CALVERLEY by FRANKLIN PIERCE ADAMS INSCRIPTIONS: 2. FOR A STATUE OF CHAUCER AT WOODSTOCK by MARK AKENSIDE ODES: BOOK 2: ODE 11. TO THE COUNTRY GENTLEMEN OF ENGLAND by MARK AKENSIDE SKY WRITING by MARY FINETTE BARBER |