Classic Poem

O glad brown earth, we greet thee,
Freed from the shrouding snow!
Soon shall the shadowy forests wake
To starry bloom for thy dear sake,
Soon where the rivulets flow
The crumpled ferns their sheaths shall break,
The slender rushes grow.
O glad brown earth, to greet thee
The skies of Spring lean low.

O sad brown earth, we greet thee!
Hushed on thy mighty breast
Thy graves lie bleak beneath the sun;
In vain the silver rivers run
On their unending quest:
Strange grows this life, since death has won
Lips that our lips have prest.
O sad brown earth, we greet thee
For those who lie at rest!