When a man gits on his uppers in a hard-pan sort of town, An' he ain't got nothin' comin' an' he can't afford ter eat, An' he's in a fix for lodgin' an' he wanders up an' down, An' you'd fancy he'd been boozin', he's so locoed 'bout the feet; When he's feelin' sneakin' sorry an' his belt is hangin' slack, An' his face is peaked an' gray-like an' his heart gits down an' whines, Then he's apt ter git a-thinkin' an' a-wishin' he was back In the little ol' log cabin in the shadder of the pines. When he's on the blazin' desert an' his canteen's sprung a leak, An' he's all alone an' crazy an' he's crawlin' like a snail, An' his tongue's so black an' swollen that it hurts him fer to speak, An' he gouges down fer water an' the raven's on his trail; When he's done with care and cursin' an' he feels more like to cry, An' he sees ol' Death a-grinnin' an' he thinks upon his crimes, Then he's like ter hev' a vision, as he settles down ter die, Of the little ol' log cabin an' the roses an' the an' he's longin' fer his call! When the sun of life's a-sinkin' you can see it 'way above, On the hill from out the shadder in a glory 'gin the sky, An' your mother's voice is callin', an' her arms are stretched in love, An' somehow you're glad you're goin', an' you ain't a-scared to die; When you'll be like a kid again an' nestle to her breast, An' never leave its shelter, an' forget, an' love, an' rest. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE HOUSE OF LIFE: 70. THE HILL-SUMMIT by DANTE GABRIEL ROSSETTI STEEL MILL by LOUIS UNTERMEYER WORK by MARGARET STEELE ANDERSON A TRIBUTE TO WILL ROGERS AND WILEY POST by ROSETTA THORSON BEACHLER WINTER NIGHTS; A BACKWARD LOOK by EDMUND CHARLES BLUNDEN TRAGEDIES by RICHARD EUGENE BURTON THE HAUNTED BRIDGE by WILLIAM CANTON BALLAD TO THE TUNE - 'AND WILL YOU NOW TO PEACE INCLINE' by PATRICK CAREY |