Page:Dreams and Images.djvu/265

 Do you ask how I live in the Valley? I weep—and I dream—and I pray. But my tears are as sweet as the dewdrops That fall on the roses in May; And my prayers, like a perfume from censers, Ascendeth to God, night and day.

In the hush of the Valley of Silence, I dream all the songs that I sing; And the music floats down the dim Valley, Till each finds a word for a wing, That to men, like the Dove of the Deluge, A message of Peace they may bring.

But far on the deep there are billows That never shall break on the beach; And I have heard songs in the Silence That never shall float into speech; And I have had dreams in the Valley Too lofty for language to reach.

And I have seen Thoughts in the Valley— Ah, me! how my spirit was stirred! And they wear holy veils on their faces, Their footsteps can scarcely be heard; They pass through the Valley, like virgins Too pure for the touch of a word!

Do you ask me the place of the Valley, Ye hearts that are harrowed by Care? It lieth afar, between mountains, And God and His angels are there; And one is the dark mount of Sorrow, And one the bright mountain of Prayer.