I. O MIGHTY King of Terrors, come! Command thy slave to his long home: Great sanctuary Grave! to thee In throngs the miserable flee; Encircled in thy frozen arms, They bid defiance to their harms, Regardless of those pond'rous little things That discompose th' uneasy heads of kings. II. In the cold earth the pris'ner lies Ransom'd from all his miseries; Himself forgotten, he forgets His cruel creditors, and debts; And there in everlasting peace Contentions with their authors cease. A turf of grass or monument of stone Umpires the petty competition. III. The disappointed lover there, Breathes not a sigh, nor sheds a tear; With us (fond fools) he never shares In sad perplexities and cares; The willow near his tomb that grows Revives his memory, not his woes; Or rain, or shine, he is advanc'd above Th' affronts of Heaven and stratagems of Love. IV. Then, mighty King of Terrors, come, Command thy slave to his long home. And thou, my friend, that lov'st me best, Seal up these eyes that brake my rest; Put out the lights, bespeak my knell, And then eternally farewell. 'Tis all th' amends our wretched Fates can give, That none can force a desperate man to live. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...HOMAGE TO SEXTUS PROPERTIUS: 2 by EZRA POUND ASHURNATSIRPAL III by CARL SANDBURG A WINTER NIGHT by SARA TEASDALE CHRISTMAS TREES; A CHRISTMAS CIRCULAR LETTER by ROBERT FROST THIS SUMMER AND LAST by THOMAS HARDY DAYS OF THE MONTH by MOTHER GOOSE ON READING 'VORTICIST POEM ON LOVE' by FRANKLIN PIERCE ADAMS |