Classic and Contemporary Poetry
HON. JESSE HOLDOM OF CHICAGO, by JOHN LAWSON STODDARD Poet's Biography First Line: Far from the great lake's pride Last Line: And the waning sun sink low. Subject(s): Babies; Fate; Fear; Future; Past; Infants; Destiny | ||||||||
Far from the great lake's pride, Over the ocean vast, Two faces picture, side by side, The future and the past. On one is the flush of dawn And the light of the morning star; On the other a shade, from knowledge drawn And the dusk of the sunset bar. One brow has the spotless sweep Of a page that is white and fair; The other forehead is graven deep With lines of thought and care. The eyes of the child look out On a world all pure and sweet; But those of the man are sad from doubt And a knowledge of men's deceit. To the baby's dainty ears Only love's accents flow; Through the man's alas! have surged for years Stories of crime and woe. Held in the infant's grasp Is a tiny, lifeless toy; In the father's firm yet tender clasp Is his last great hope, -- his boy! Wisely the parent peers Through the future's unknown skies, For knowledge of life has awakened fears Of the storms that may arise When his darling boy no more Can cling to his father's breast, But when on the strand of the silent shore That father shall be at rest. Ah me! could the wisdom won Through the father's fateful years Be but transmitted to the son, There were little need for fears. But each must tread alone The wine-press of his life; Into each cup by Fate is thrown The bitter drops of strife. Forth from that fond embrace Must the little stranger go; For the rising sun must mount through space. And the waning sun sink low. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...ATTEMPTING TO ANSWER DAVID IGNATOW'S QUESTION by ROBERT BLY FROST AND HIS ENEMIES by ROBERT BLY THE WORLDS IN THIS WORLD by LAURE-ANNE BOSSELAAR UNABLE TO FIND by LAURE-ANNE BOSSELAAR TO HELEN KELLER - HUMANITARIAN, SOCIAL DEMOCRAT, GREAT SOUL by EDWIN MARKHAM DOMESDAY BOOK: FINDING OF THE BODY by EDGAR LEE MASTERS WE COME BACK by KENNETH REXROTH THE WAKING (2) by THEODORE ROETHKE A MAY MONODY by JOHN LAWSON STODDARD |
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