The Last Good-by
How shall we know it is the last good-by?
The skies will not be darkened in that hour,
No sudden blight will fall on leaf or flower,
No single bird will hush its ceaseless cry,
And you will hold my hands, and smile or sigh
Just as before. Perchance the sudden tears
In your dear eyes will answer to my fears;
But there will come no voice of prophecy,--
No voice to whisper, "Now, and not again,
Space for last words, last kisses, and last prayer,
For all the wild unmitigated pain
Of those who, parting, clasp hands with despair:"--
"Who knows?" we say, but doubt and fear remain,
Would any choose to part thus unaware?
How shall we know it is the last good-by?
The skies will not be darkened in that hour,
No sudden blight will fall on leaf or flower,
No single bird will hush its ceaseless cry,
And you will hold my hands, and smile or sigh
Just as before. Perchance the sudden tears
In your dear eyes will answer to my fears;
But there will come no voice of prophecy,--
No voice to whisper, "Now, and not again,
Space for last words, last kisses, and last prayer,
For all the wild unmitigated pain
Of those who, parting, clasp hands with despair:"--
"Who knows?" we say, but doubt and fear remain,
Would any choose to part thus unaware?
***
The form of this poem is in paragraph form and in each line, there is 10 to 11 syllables, though mostly 10 syllables per line. The words in a line is from 6 words to 10 words. However, the number of words in a line can change the rhythm of the poem. The syllables, to me, are the ones that really count because if each line has the same number of syllables, then the rhythm and the beat of the poem will be even.
When I read this poem, I think about the time I had to say goodbye to someone. But for lines 3 to 4:
"The skies will not be darkened in that hour,
No sudden blight will fall on leaf or flower,
No single bird will hush its ceaseless cry.."
They are very descriptive and they make me think of the sky at twilight, a flower dying, and a cawing of a raven. These images will make one sad because those are the times and things I'm most afraid of in a day; having the day end, a flower (life) dying, and a shrieking call of bird. Especially the last line; I imagine a barren corn maize with only a scarecrow in the middle and two crows circling the field.
All of the ending words of each sentence rhyme with another word. There is some sort of pattern in the poem. From the line 1 to line 7, the rhyming sequence goes by: A B B A A CC. From line 11 to 14, the sequence goes by D E D E.
