Page:Writings of Henry David Thoreau (1906) v5.djvu/445

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
TO MY BROTHER
403

TO MY BROTHER

Brother, where dost thou dwell?
What sun shines for thee now?
Dost thou indeed fare well,
As we wished thee here below?


What season didst thou find?
'Twas winter here.
Are not the Fates more kind
Than they appear?


Is thy brow clear again
As in thy youthful years?
And was that ugly pain
The summit of thy fears?


Yet thou wast cheery still;
They could not quench thy fire;
Thou didst abide their will,
And then retire.


Where chiefly shall I look
To feel thy presence near?
Along the neighboring brook
May I thy voice still hear?


Dost thou still haunt the brink
Of yonder river's tide?
And may I ever think
That thou art by my side?