Sacred Heart #16

Good night! goodnight! As we so oft have said
Beneath this roof at midnight, in the days
That are no more, and shall no more return.
Thou hast but taken thy lamp and gone to bed;
I stay a little longer, as one stays
To cover up the embers that still burn.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 – 1882) was an American poet who wrote many lyric poems known for their musicality. He became the most popular American poet of his day and had success overseas.  

Everyone eventually feels the loss of family members or dear friends. From that day forward nothing is ever the same. It is not so much the grief that one feels at the time of parting that wears at the heart, but the small everyday occurrences that can be a constant reminder of the absence. Particularly, the coming of night can expose the depth of our loneliness.

In the short poem above, the poet acknowledges that the past will not come again but rather than frame this as a permanent sorrow, he sees it as temporary interval. Our loved ones have just retired to bed a little earlier than ourselves. It is our part, then, to fulfill our responsibilities of this life, to tend the fire that still burns, rather than be lost in despair.