Some People...

A Little Splash

Why Do You Do That?

And Thou Art Dead, As Young and Fair

And thou art dead, as young and fair 
As aught of mortal birth; 
And form so soft, and charms so rare, 
Too soon return'd to Earth! 
Though Earth receiv'd them in her bed, 
And o'er the spot the crowd may tread 
In carelessness or mirth, 
There is an eye which could not brook 
A moment on that grave to look.

I will not ask where thou liest low, 
Nor gaze upon the spot; 
There flowers or weeds at will may grow, 
So I behold them not: 
It is enough for me to prove 
That what I lov'd, and long must love, 
Like common earth can rot; 
To me there needs no stone to tell, 
'T is Nothing that I lov'd so well.

Yet did I love thee to the last 
As fervently as thou, 
Who didst not change through all the past, 
And canst not alter now. 
The love where Death has set his seal, 
Nor age can chill, nor rival steal, 
Nor falsehood disavow: 
And, what were worse, thou canst not see 
Or wrong, or change, or fault in me.

The better days of life were ours; 
The worst can be but mine: 
The sun that cheers, the storm that lowers, 
Shall never more be thine. 
The silence of that dreamless sleep 
I envy now too much to weep; 
Nor need I to repine 
That all those charms have pass'd away, 
I might have watch'd through long decay.

The flower in ripen'd bloom unmatch'd 
Must fall the earliest prey; 
Though by no hand untimely snatch'd, 
The leaves must drop away: 
And yet it were a greater grief 
To watch it withering, leaf by leaf, 
Than see it pluck'd to-day; 
Since earthly eye but ill can bear 
To trace the change to foul from fair.

I know not if I could have borne 
To see thy beauties fade; 
The night that follow'd such a morn 
Had worn a deeper shade: 
Thy day without a cloud hath pass'd, 
And thou wert lovely to the last, 
Extinguish'd, not decay'd; 
As stars that shoot along the sky 
Shine brightest as they fall from high.

As once I wept, if I could weep, 
My tears might well be shed, 
To think I was not near to keep 
One vigil o'er thy bed; 
To gaze, how fondly! on thy face, 
To fold thee in a faint embrace, 
Uphold thy drooping head; 
And show that love, however vain, 
Nor thou nor I can feel again.

Yet how much less it were to gain, 
Though thou hast left me free, 
The loveliest things that still remain, 
Than thus remember thee! 
The all of thine that cannot die 
Through dark and dread Eternity 
Returns again to me, 
And more thy buried love endears 
Than aught except its living years. 

The Best Time To Start Thinking About Your Retirement...

Barney

And I had a dream
About my old school
And she was there all pink and gold and glittering
I threw my arms around her legs
Came to weeping
Came to weeping

And I heard your voice
As clear as day
And you told me I should concentrate
It was all so strange
And so surreal
That a ghost should be so practical
Only if for a night

And the only solution was to stand and fight
And my body was loose and I was set alight
But you came over me like some holy rite
And although I was burning, you're the only light
Only if for a night

And the grass was so green against my new clothes
And I did cartwheels in your honor
Dancing on tiptoes
My own secret ceremonials
Before the service began
In the graveyard doing handstands

And I heard your voice
As clear as day
And you told me I should concentrate
It was all so strange
And so surreal
That a ghost should be so practical
Only if for a night

And the only solution was to stand and fight
And my body was loose and I was set alight
But you came over me like some holy rite
And although I was burning, you're the only light
Only if for a night

Madam, my dear, my dame
Tell me what all this sighing's about
Tell me what all this sighing's about

And I heard your voice
As clear as day
And you told me I should concentrate
It was all so strange
And so surreal
That a ghost should be so practical
Only if for a night

Only if for a night

Pause For Thought...