Alive in the Snow - An 1877 Poem

By Alice Carey.

The leaves are falling and fading.

The winds are rough and wild,

The birds have ceased their calling :

But let me tell you, my child :

 

'Though day by day, as it closes,

Doth darker and colder grow,

The roots of the bright red roses

Will keep alive under the snow.

 

And when the winter is over,

The boughs will get new leaves,

The quail come back to the clover,

And the swallow back to the eaves.

 

The robin will appear on his bosom

A vest that is bright and new,

And the loveliest way side blossom

Will shine with the sun and dew.

 

So, when some dear joy loses

Its beauteous summer glow,

Think how the roots of the roses

Are kept alive in the snow.

March 28, 1877. Clearfield Republican 18(13): 2, new series.