Never here, forever there, Where all parting, pain, and care, And death, and time shall disappear,— Forever there, but never here! The horologe of Eternity Sayeth this incessantly,— “Forever — never! Never — forever!”

More from The Old Clock on the Stairs (1845)

• A boy’s will is the wind’s will, And the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts.
• And the song, from beginning to end, I found again in the heart of a friend.
• Between the dark and the daylight, When the night is beginning to lower, Comes a pause in the day’s occupation, That is known as the Children’s Hour.
• But the great Master said, “I see No best in kind, but in degree; I gave a various gift to each, To charm, to strengthen, and to teach.
• God sent his Singers upon earth With songs of sadness and of mirth, That they might touch the hearts of men, And bring them back to heaven again.
• If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man’s life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.