Beyond

MY heart it lies beyond, dear,
    In the land of the setting day,
Where the whispers are soft and fond, dear,
    Of the voices that pass away;
And oft, when the night is falling,
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    And a calm is on the sea,
I fancy I hear them calling
    rom that far-off land for me.
It is only idle dreaming,
    But the dream is full of rest,
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And up where that glory is streaming,
    From the gates of the golden west,
I wander away in spirit,
    With a mingled joy and pain,
Till I almost seem to inherit
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    The sweet dead past again.
I see the old dear faces,
    I greet them hand to hand;
But sadly too, for the places
    Seem strange in that curious land;
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Till a new light breaks, and all other
    Grows dim to my streaming eyes;
For a son has found his mother
    In the depths of the throbbing skies.
Yes, my heart it lies beyond, dear,
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    Where that sun is burning low,
And were you not so fond, dear,
    I might perhaps—but no!
Are you weary already with walking?
    And tears! What tears, dear, too!
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How selfish of me to be talking,
    My darling, in this way to you!