I Saw the Clouds

I saw the clouds among the hills   Trailing their plumes of rainy gray. The purple of the woods behind   Fell down to where the valley lay In sweet satiety of rain, With ripened fruit, and full filled grain. I saw the graves, upon the plain,   Of pioneers, who took the land, And tamed the stubborn elements   Till they were gentle to the hand. Their children, now in fortune’s ways, Dwell in their father’s palaces. I saw some old forgotten lays;   And treasured volumes I passed by. They were but repetitions cheap   For any hucksterer to buy. The clouds, the graves, the worn old song, I bear them in my heart along.