Spring Promise
By GEORGE ABBE
THE frail hepatica opens its white
To the sky’s towers, to the flags of light;
And under the marching feet of brutal days,
Under the sounding tread of wind and storm,
It shapes the memories of gentler ways,
It keeps the fragrance of small beauties warm;
Till in the softness of the summer season
Blossoms of earth and sky proclaim its right;
The fragrance of a whole world shows its reason.
To the sky’s towers, to the flags of light;
And under the marching feet of brutal days,
Under the sounding tread of wind and storm,
It shapes the memories of gentler ways,
It keeps the fragrance of small beauties warm;
Till in the softness of the summer season
Blossoms of earth and sky proclaim its right;
The fragrance of a whole world shows its reason.