The Parting

We did not part as others part;
And should we meet on earth no more,
Yet deep and dear within my heart
Some thoughts will rest a treasured store.
How oft, when weary and alone,
Have I recalled each word, each look,
The meaning of each varying tone,
And the last parting glance we took!
Yes, sometimes even here are found
Those who can touch the chords of love,
And wake a glad and holy sound,
Like that which fills the courts above.
It is as when a traveller hears,
In a strange land, his native tongue,
A voice he loved in happier years,
A song which once his mother sung.
We part; the sea may roll between,
While we through different climates roam:
Sad days — a life — may intervene;
But we shall meet again at home.