The groves were God’s first temples, and to-day
Should man yet worship there, were he unwise?
The gray old woods whose mighty trunks uprise
In silent majesty, where wildings sway
Their fragrant bells and scent the air with May;
The fields whose flowery beauty open lies
Beneath the glory of the summer skies:—
These have been nature’s simple shrines for aye,
These are the temples of the living God.
And so for dome the over-arching blue
I’ll take, for floor the soft and verdant sod,
For aisles the trees in stately avenue,—
While myriad choirs of birds in hymns of bliss
Fill all the heart of this vast edifice.
(John Russell Hayes)
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Based on Topics: God Poems, Nature Poems, Happiness Poems, Success Poems, Birds Poems, Summer PoemsBased on Keywords: over-arching, wildings