Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, STONE WALLS, by JULIE MATHILDE LIPPMANN


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

STONE WALLS, by                    
First Line: Along the country roadside, stone on stone
Last Line: Are lost like shadows in the morning-break.
Subject(s): Walls


ALONG the country roadside, stone on stone,
Past waving grain-field, and near broken stile,
The walls stretch onward, an uneven pile,
With rankling vines and lichen overgrown:
So stand they sentinel. Unchanged, alone,
They're left to watch the seasons' passing slow:
The summer's sunlight or the winter's snow,
The spring-time's birdling, or the autumn's moan.
Who placed the stones now gray with many years?
And did the rough hands tire, the sore hearts ache,
The eyes grow dim with all their weight of tears?
Or did the work seem light for some dear sake?
Those lives are over. All their hopes and fears
Are lost like shadows in the morning-break.





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