WOULD YOU CARE?
All day on my pillow I wearily lay,
With a stabbing pain at my heart,
With throbbing temples, and a feverish thirst
Burning, my lips apart.
If I longed for a touch of your soft, strong hand,
For you one little minute there;
For a smile, or a kiss, or a word to bless,
Would you blame me, love?—would
you care?
When the long, long, lonesome day was done,
And you never for a moment came,
If I tried to shut you out of my heart,
Impatient at your name;
If disappointment’s bitter sting
Was harder than pain to bear,
If I turned away with a doubting frown,
Would you blame me, love?—would
you care?
Should I die to-night, and you saw me not
Again till my soul had fled
With its vain request, and my features wore
The white hue of the dead—
Would you place just once, in a last caress,
Your hand on my death-damp hair?
Would you give me a thought, or a fond regret?
Would you kiss me, love?—would
you care?
A THOUGHT OF HEAVEN.
Friend of my heart, you say to me
That your belief is this—
The heaven is but a vision rare
Of pure, ethereal bliss.
And life there but a dream enhanced,
Where never sound alarms;
Where flowers ne’er fade and skies ne’er
cloud,
And voiceless music charms—
And save as see we in our dreams
The dear ones gone before,
The friends that here we knew and loved,
We’ll know and love no more.