Half of my life is gone, and I have let
   The years slip from me and have not
      fulfilled
   The aspiration of my youth, to build
   Some tower of song with lofty parapet.
 Not indolence, nor pleasure, nor the fret
   Of restless passions that would not be
      stilled,
   But sorrow, and a care that almost killed,
   Kept me from what I may accomplish yet;
 Though, half-way up the hill, I see the Past
   Lying beneath me with its sounds and
      sights, --
   A city in the twilight dim and vast,
 With smoking roofs, soft bells, and
      gleaming lights, --
   And hear above me on the autumnal blast
   The cataract of Death far thundering 
      from the heights.