I have survived this long br Though none has heard my song, br And I shall sing until br Silence becomes my will, br Because I feel no more br The spur that can prolong br My ride upon that steed br Imagination freed br Upon Parnassus Hill. br br Paralysis or death br Alone will stop my breath. br Then I shall be content br Helpless to be sent br Further on my way br Out of sight of night or day. br br Singing silently I'll go br Whether in the shades below br With Proserpine and Pluto, br Or in the City of the Sun br Or William Blake's Jerusalem, br Singing with angelic hosts br Epics of departed ghosts; br Or in Yeats' Byzantium br Cruising by the dangerous coasts br Where sage and angel come, br Where the cliffs are spiritual fire br Consuming all of nature's mire, br Where the long-remembered hero, br God and goddess careless go, br Sword in sheath, in hand a lyre, br Mind a ferment, heart a glow, br For nothing doth immortals tire. br br Now with mud upon my boots br I taste late autumn's fruits - br Some are sweet and some are bitter - br All the past is now mere litter. br br All that now remains to do - br Shoot the rapids, my canoe! br Downstream runs the river of life - br You're alone, you have no wife br To hold your hand or make your bed br When you are carried over the falls br And plunge beneath those dreadful walls - br And strike the earth and know you're dead. br br So I sing and will keep singing br Till I hear the loud bells ringing br -For my long-awaited death, br -For my first ecstatic breath - br In a night that shall be dawn, br On a death-bed, man reborn.