afterglow

The Afterglow.

After the glow of the noonday sun,
After the day its course has run,
After the glare and bustle and heat,
There comes a peace that is calm and sweet.
The fiery sun sinks low to rest,
Mid flaming clouds, far in the west:
Then softly, gently, stealing slow,
Comes on the golden after glow.

The soft and mellow beams of light
Stem for awhile the flood of night,
And tiny stars, like brilliant gems,
Deep-set in golden diadems,
In dazzling beauty, twinkle so
And blend in the gleam of the afterglow.

Farewell to tiresome toil and care.
All nature kneels in silent prayer,
While the soft rays dimmer, dimmer grow
In the mellow, roseate, afterglow.

As I idly sit in the waning light
And watch the silent, star-lit night,
As she trails her sparkling, sable shroud
O,er the edge of the rosy, tinted cloud,
It seems from my heart the burdens roll,
And a calm, sweet peace steals o'er my soul.

May the passions of men like the heat of the sun
Be cooled and calmed e'er their course is run.
As they sink to rest and fade and go,
May they leave a peaceful afterglow.

Like the light in the west when the sun has set,
Sweet memories linger and cheer us yet.
No fiery passion the heart then feels,
But roseate joy thru our being steals,
And a deeper holier, joy we know
As we feel in our souls the afterglow.
The strongest emotion of pleasure will bring
Some feeling of pain, some grief, some sting.
Mourn not past joys as we see them go,
For there yet remains the afterglow.

__Gertrude Crumb Harman