MARK’D you the troubled face of heaven,
The sun a broad discolour’d spot,
The wheeling clouds impetuous driven,
Its lovely fields of azure blot?
Heard you that wild discordant yell,
The voice of many a mingled blast?
Saw you the feathery flakes which fell,
At fall of eve, so thick and fast?
How dreary is the closing day,
More dismal still will be the night,
No trembling moon-beam’s paly ray,
No scatter’d star’s faint glimmering light.
Ye thriftless, thoughtless, hardy race,
Who never for to-morrow care,
But wander still from place to place,
While others for your wants prepare,
Who, when the summer’s day was o’er,
Beneath the forest oak’s broad screen,
Safe slumber’d till the morning hour
On nature’s flow’ry carpet green:
And when the midnight air grew cold,
Beneath the shelt’ring hay-stack crept,
Or, in some shed or ruin old,
Contented with the cattle slept-
Say, would not now the fire-side warm,
Protected from the tempest’s strife,
And settled habitation charm,
More than the wand’ring vagrant’s life?
Hark! what a wild tempestuous night!
The weary traveller heaven defend!
And guide his doubtful steps aright,
Who’s distant from his journey’s end-
Heav’n guide him, if his destin’d way
Lie o’er the common’s dreary bound,
Where, if he wander far astray,
Perils encompass him around:-
The undiscover’d precipice,
The dingle, fill’d with drifted snow
The slipp’ry plains of treach’rous ice,
Which hide the dark deep pool below:-
Safe through this wild and stormy night,
Through all the dangers of his course,
May Mercy guide his steps aright,
And shield him from the tempest’s force.
(Isabella Lickbarrow)
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Based on Topics: Life Poems, Night Poems, Light Poems, Nature Poems, Heaven Poems, Place Poems, Morning Poems, Summer Poems, Danger & Risk Poems, Charm PoemsBased on Keywords: fire-side, paly, discolour, undiscover, hay-stack