Sonnet of Waning Even-tide

When daylight fades and twilight’s lids grow heavy
When sky and earth don night-time’s muffled shawl
When all the ships are harbored in the levee
Silence unmarred, save for the loon’s faint call
When dreary toil is laid aside til morning
When Home-fires soothe our petty wants and woes
When darkened limbs are stripped of spring’s adorning
Skeletal against the dim-lit half-moon glows
I sense upon night’s stealthy cusp, a warning
The portent of a quickly waning rose

Ah, life is but a swiftly fading flower
How fair the bud, still waiting to unfold
How brilliant is youth’s vibrant morning hour
How sweet the dream harbored in vision bold
How quickly now the bud becomes a blossom
Its glorious beauty cheers the hastening day
While in the hidden portals of love's bosom
Softly she lets the small dream sail away
Better than dreams, the golden fruit of wisdom
Better than youth, a crown of silver-gray

Where does the darkness go in dawn's returning?
Where does the spirit fly when bodies rest?
Where is the fortune now that steals our yearning?
What is the hope that burns within our chest?
Where is the One who rules Time's still transition
The seasons, days and tides that slip to naught
Where is the final object of our vision?
The gathering of treasure that we sought
Have we obtained love's ticket into Heaven
Or must we tell life's Giver we forgot?

Janet~