Meeting (I said good-bye in hope)

I said good-bye in hope;
But, now we meet again,
I have no hope at all
Of anything but pain, --
Our parting and our meeting
Alike in vain.

Hope on through all your life
Until the end, dear friend:
Live through your noble life
Where joy and promise blend-
I too will live my life
Until the end.

Long may your vine entwine,
Long may your fig-tree spread,
Their paradise of shade
Above your cherished head:
My shelter was a gourd.
And it is dead.

Yet, when out of a grave
We are gathered home at last.
Then may we own life spilt
No good worth holding fast: --
Death had its bitterness,
But it is past.