Page:A Treasury of South African Poetry.djvu/46

 THE RIVER OF LIFE.

the tide of a mighty river,

The years are running fast,

As they hurry us on to the future,

Like leaves on their current cast.

And that river shall merge in the ocean

Of a mystic eternity;

And the banks are the countless ages

That mark its course to the sea.

God breathes on the dim old forests,

Upon those banks that grow;

And the leaves from the stately branches

Are shed on the stream below.

A few there be on the river,

That whirl and softly glide

By the banks of Ease and Pleasure,

With a smooth and gentle tide.

But many are cast in the shallows

With a heavy lading of woe;

And the waters are bitter with sorrow,

And the tide to the sea runs slow.

Yet some sing blithe on their journey,

Though tossed on an angry wave;

And they conquer the terrors of tempests,

For the hearts of these are brave.