[Lyric] The Day Is Done (William Ellery Channing)

The day has past, I never may return;
Twelve circling years have run since first I came
And kindled the pure truth of friendship's flame;
Alone remain these ashes in the urn,—
Vainly for light the taper may I turn,—
Thy hand is closed, as for these years, the same,
And for the substance nought is but the name;
No more hope, no more a ray to burn.

But once more, in the pauses of thy joy,
Remember him who sought thee in his youth,
And, with the old reliance of the boy,
Asked for thy treasures in the guise of truth.
The air is thick with sighs,—the shaded sun
Shows on the hillside that the day is done.