Classic Poem

Thus hast thou found, in parted years,
Good undivined, unhoped for light;
Joy bathing in the dew of tears,
Wept by despair that self-same night.
Thus hast thou met the sudden glow
Of souls so pure, so formed for bliss,
That reason never yet could know
Why they were in a world like this.
Why they, without one lingering stain,
Should dwell with darkness and with crime;
Why they, all heaven, should share the pain,
Without the mildew teints of time,
Except it be to level low
All pride and charms of mortal years,
Leading athwart this vale of woe
The radiant forms of happier spheres:
Except it be to glean afar
All hearts devote to social bliss,
Luring their footsteps by a star
Whose every beam wakes ecstacies.
That when those hearts are won, and find
Nothing on earth but that worth viewing,
That star may flee, and leave behind
No hope, no pleasure but pursuing.