They Are Not Long
© by Ernest Dowson

"Vitae summa brevis spem nos vetat incohare longam"*

They are not long, the weeping and the laughter,
Love and desire and hate:
I think they have no portion in us after
We pass the gate.
They are not long, the days of wine and roses:
Out of a misty dream
Our path emerges for a while, then closes
Within a dream.

* "The shortness of life prevents us from entertaining far-off hopes" (Horace)

Sumitted by Corinne

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