RENEWAL
As the young phoenix, duteous to his sire,
Lifts in his beak the creature he has been,
And, laying o'er the corse broad vans for screen,
Bears it to solitudes, erects a pyre.
And, soon as it is wasted by the fire.
Grides with disdainful claw the ashes clean,
Then spreading unencumbered wings serene
Mounts to the aether with renewed desire :
So joyously I lift myself above
The life I buried in hot flames to-day ;
The flames themselves are dead — and I can range
Alone through the untarnished sky I love,
And trust myself, as from the grave one may,
To the enchanting miracles of change.
