I wish I was by that dim Lake, <br />Where sinful souls their farewell take <br />Of this vain world, and half-way lie <br />In death's cold shadow, ere they die. <br />There, there, far from thee, <br />Deceitful world, my home should be; <br />Where, come what might of gloom and pain, <br />False hope should n'er deceive again. <br /> <br />The lifeless sky, the mournful sound <br />Of unseen waters falling round; <br />The dry leaves, quivering o'er my head, <br />Like man, unquiet even when dead! <br />These, ay, these shall wean <br />My soul from life's deluding scene, <br />And turn each thought, o'ercharged with gloom <br />Like willows, downward towards the tomb. <br /> <br />As they, who to their couch at night <br />Would win repose, first quench the light, <br />So must the hopes, that keep this breast <br />Awake, be quench'd, ere it can rest. <br />Cold, cold, this heart must grow, <br />Unmmoved by either joy or woe, <br />Like freezing founts, where all that's thrown <br />Within their current turns to stone.<br /><br />Thomas Moore<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-wish-i-was-by-that-dim-lake/
