Classic Poem

From the time he was a boy
He loved to linger
At the stage door of the theatre
To catch a fleeting glimpse
Of the actors in a play
As they hurried from the sordid streets
Into the enchanted house
Of gay romance.
But he is dead now,
And I often wonder
If he still tarries
At the stage doors far away,
Welcoming the weary players of this earth
Who pass into the shadowy stage doors
Of that strange theatre
Beyond the silent stars
To play new rôles in the mysterious drama,
Called “Life Eternal!”