Solitude

Solitude

By Ella Wheeler Wilcox

.. ..

Laugh, and the world laughs with you;

  Weep, and you weep alone.

For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth,

  But has trouble enough of its own.

Sing, and the hills will answer;

  Sigh, it is lost on the air.

The echoes bound to a joyful sound,

  But shrink from voicing care.

.. ..

Rejoice, and men will seek you;

  Grieve, and they turn and go.

They want full measure of all your pleasure,

  But they do not need your woe.

Be glad, and our friends are many;

  Be sad, and you lose them all.

There are none to decline your nectared wine,

  But alone you must drink life’s gall.

.. ..

Feast, and your halls are crowded;

  Fast, and the world goes by.

Succeed and give, and it helps you live,

  But no man can help you die.

There is room in the halls of pleasure

  For a long and lordly train,

But one by one we must all file on

  Through the narrow aisles of pain.

ms 8/4/09