Remember!

Remember, Soul, the solemn word,
Still uttered by thy loving Lord:—
“That which thou sowest, thou shalt reap.”
Let not thy nobler nature sleep;
The word the Voice within thee saith,
Reveals the law of life and death.
That law, inexorably just,
For good or ill, binds soul and dust,—
And sways, with equal sovereignty,
The shoreless sea of Destiny!
Choose well; for baser choice endures:—
Each heedless hour its age ensures,—
Planting, in place of memories blest,
A cypress forest in the breast.