Moonlight

wash the sorrows from your brow, And the reed shall sigh beside your ear; So close, so near, the lonely sound That reaches through the night above the trees, To breathe and linger, shivering along the stream, On the air, rich on autumn wings, Deepening the hue of shadows bright, And haunting echoes whirl around The bends, from stone to stone, As the fireflies make their requiem, luminous Against the night, remapping the stars.

• Sidney Keyes