Poems (Dorr)/The First Fire
THE FIRST FIRE
O virgin hearth, as chaste and coldAs one who waits for burial mould,Whom shall we summon here to keepWatch while thou wakest from thy sleep?
Not from the far sky spaces, blueAs those that Zeus and Hera knew,May Hestia wing her airy flight,Bringer of holy warmth and light.
Pan may not come. By stream and shoreFair Naiads dry their locks no more;No Oread dwells in mount and glen;No Dryad flees from gods or men.
Yet still do forest voices clearGreet him whose soul hath ears to hear;The murmur of the rustling pineIs sweet as Hermes's harp divine.
The winds that rend the mighty oakClash loud as Ares's battle stroke;The maples toss each leafy crownThough Dian's votive wreaths are brown.
Here, as to sacrificial pyreKindled with pure celestial fire, Shall hemlock, pine, and maple bringThe deep wood's fragrant offering,
As incense to this household shrine.O hearth, no richer spoil were thineIf all Dodona's oaks had shedTheir life-blood and for thee lay dead!
Thou waiting one, doth no strange thrillThy quickening veins with wonder fill?Have the far-seeing, prescient yearsNo presage for thy listening ears?
Life hath its phases manifold,Yet still the new repeats the old;There is no truer truth than this:What was, is still the thing that is.
Therefore we know that thou wilt hearChildhood's light laughter ringing clear;The flow of song, the breath of prayer,Whisper of love, and sigh of care.
Thou wilt see youth go forth to gaugeHis being's lofty heritage,And manhood in the autumn evesCome homeward laden with his sheaves.
O life and death, O joy and woe,In mingling streams your tides shall flow,While sun and storm alike fulfilThe mandates of the Eternal Will!
Now bring the torch and light the fire,Let the swift flames leap high and higher, Let the red radiance stream afar,Dearer than glow of moon or star!
Burn, burn, O fire, burn still and clear,And fill the house with warmth and cheer!Soar, soar, O fire, so brave, so bright,And souls shall soar to share thy flight!