The Three Wakings Author:Elizabeth Rundle Charles Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: A TRUE DREAM. I Dreamt we danced in careless glee, With hearts and footsteps light and free, That one so dearly loved and I, As in the childish days gone by F... more »or ever. I felt her arms around me fold, I heard her soft laugh as of old; Her eyes with smiles were brimming o'er, Eyes we may meet on earth no more For ever. Then there came mingling with my dreams A sense perplex'd of loss and change— An echo dim of time and tears; Until I said, " How long it seems Since thus we danced ! Is it not strange 1 Do you not feel the weight of years ? Or dread life's evening shadows cold ? Or mourn to think we must grow old ?" Wondering, she paused a little while, Then answer'd, with a radiant smile, "No, never!" Wondering as if to her I told The customs of some foreign laud ; Or spoke a tongue she knew of old, But could no longer understand. Till o'er her face that sunshine broke, And with that radiant smile she spoke That "Never." . But not until the dream had fled I knew the sense of what she said; Young with immortal truth and love, Child in the Father's house above For ever. We echo back thy words again, They smite us with no grief or pain ; We journey not towards the night, But to the breaking of the light Together. Our life is no poor cistern'd store The lavish years are draining low; But living streams that, welling o'er, Fresh from the Living Fountain flow For ever. THE ALPINE GENTIAN. She 'mid ice mountains vast Long had lain sleeping, When she look'd forth at last Timidly peeping. Trembling she gazed around, All round her slept; O'er the dead icy ground Cold shadows crept. Wide fields of silent snow, Still, frozen seas— What could her young life do 'Mid such as these ? Not a voice came to her, Not a warm br...« less