Hurrying for ever in their restless flight br The generations of earth's teeming womb br Rise into being and lapse into the tomb br Like transient bubbles sparkling in the light; br They sink in quick succession out of sight br Into the thick insuperable gloom br Our futile lives in flashing by illume-- br Lightning which mocks the darkness of the night. br br Nay--but consider, though we change and die, br If men must pass shall Man not still remain? br As the unnumbered drops of summer rain br Whose changing particles unchanged on high, br Fixed, in perpetual motion, yet maintain br The mystic bow emblazoned on the sky.