To the River Charles Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

River! that in silence windest
        Through the meadows, bright and free,
Till at length thy rest thou findest
        In the bosom of the sea!

Four long years of mingled feeling,
        Half in rest, and half in strife,
I have seen thy waters stealing
        Onward, like the stream of life.

Thou hast taught me, Silent River!
        Many a lesson, deep and long;
Thou hast been a generous giver;
        I can give thee but a song.

Oft in sadness and in illness,
        I have watched thy current glide,
Till the beauty of its stillness
        Overflowed me, like a tide.

And in better hours and brighter,
        When I saw thy waters gleam,
I have felt my heart beat lighter,
        And leap onward with thy stream.

Not for this alone I love thee,
        Nor because thy waves of blue
From celestial seas above thee
        Take their own celestial hue.