Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, WELCOME TO DEATH, by RICHARD SOLOMON GEDNEY


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

WELCOME TO DEATH, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: Oh! Why should we linger on earth, when have fled
Last Line: There's release from all ills in thy grasp!
Subject(s): Death; Love - Loss Of; Old Age; Weariness; Dead, The; Fatigue


OH! why should we linger on earth, when have fled
The charms which once made it so bright;
When Truth, Love, and Friendship together lie dead,
And hope spreads her wings to take flight!

Earth's fairest flowers long cannot last,
Their fragrance soon passes away;
And Youth's sunny hours are still quicker past,
'Neath Time's withering breath of decay!

How few are the moments of joy I have known,
How many the tears I have shed!
How few are the sunbeams that o'er me have shone,
How swiftly their brightness has fled!

Lonely and sad I wander through Earth,
Forgetfulness all that I crave;
How forced is my laughter—how hollow my mirth—
I seek but the rest of the grave!

Then, welcome, oh Death! thy touch has no sting;
The happy alone fear thy clasp;
To the weary on earth thou comfort dost bring,
There's release from all ills in thy grasp!





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