Poem by Bryan Waller Procter

Song for Twilight

Hide me, O twilight air!
Hide me from thought, from care,
From all things foul or fair,
   Until to-morrow! 
To-night I strive no more; 
No more my soul shall soar: 
Come, sleep, and shut the door
   ’Gainst pain and sorrow!

If I must see through dreams, 
Be mine Elysian gleams, 
Be mine by morning streams
   To watch and wander;
So may my spirit cast
(Serpent-like) off the past,
And my free soul at last
   Have leave to ponder.

And shouldst thou ’scape control,
Ponder of love, sweet soul;
On joy, the end and goal
   Of all endeavour: 
But if earth's pains will rise 
(As damps will seek the skies), 
Then, night, seal thou mine eyes,
   In sleep for ever.

1. The Poet's Song to His Wife
2. Is My Lover on the Sea
3. A Poet’s Thought
4. Pre-Existence
5. Golden-Tressed Adelaide

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