Poems (Curwen)/What lies before us

by Annie Isabel Curwen

What Lies Before Us?

What lies before us? Who can say?
    Not you, nor I.
No shadow falls upon our way,
No warning voices, whispering, say
    The end is nigh.
And yet there's but a step between
This world of ours and the Unseen,
    Whose borders lie
So near us, that a sigh, a breath,
Bridges the gulf that we call death.

We journey on with smile and jest,
    While it may be
Some dear one, one we loved the best,
Has gone forth on their last lone quest
    Across the sea—
The vast dark sea, which flows so near,
Yet ne'er is heard by mortal ear.
    Then, vainly we,
Weeping, call to them o'er this tide;
No voice comes from the "other side."

What lies before us? Who can tell?
    Not mortal man.
To-day we say that "all is well,"
To-morrow may have rung the knell
    Of some fond plan,
Blighted our hopes, or cherished schemes.
Ah, me! how many golden dreams
    Fate loves to ban:
But hope, like spring, returns again,
And time heals wounds and deadens pain.

Wisely, our Father does decree—
    And God is wise—
That we, His children, shall not see;
And so He veils futurity
    From mortal eyes,
Knowing, if we should see the road,
Many would sink beneath their load
    Never to rise.
But though He blinds us day by day,
God gives new strength, and leads the way.