Classic Poem

Zoe! When first I saw your face,
So exquisitely fair it seemed,
So full of still and silent grace,
That, gazing fixedly, I deemed
Some waxen image met my view,
No living child of human frame! —
For simple then I little knew
That Life and Zoe were the same.
Still seem, methinks, the ringlets fair,
Now that in riper years we meet,
The polished brow, the placid air,
To justify my fond conceit.
But ah! those eyes that softly move
Feelings of tenderest love to claim,
That voice, those livelier graces prove
That Life and Zoe are the same.

The air serene, the tranquil brow,
Bespeak a soul unvexed by strife; —
Long be the years, sweet maid, as now
With all that cheers, that breathes of life;
And when those mortal charms decline,
The vital spark of heavenly flame
Triumphant o'er the grave shall shine,
And Life and Zoe be the same.