Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Ring Out the False, Ring in the True

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.
Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
Ring out the grief that saps the mind
For those that here we see no more;
Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.
Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife;
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.
Ring out the want, the care, the sin,
The faithless coldness of the times;
Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes
But ring the fuller minstrel in.
Ring out false pride in place and blood,
The civic slander and the spite;
Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.
Ring out old shapes of foul disease;
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
Ring out the thousand wars of old,
Ring in the thousand years of peace.
Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the God that is to be.

--Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Happy new year to you all!

4 Comments:

At 8:27 AM, Blogger Christopher King said...

Oh, I'm ringin' baby.

Ringin' hard cold mackin' Cleveland Heights Roldo pimp style.

In the house.

Namaste.

 
At 9:42 AM, Blogger John Ettorre said...

Happy new year, Chris. Thanks for visiting all the way from New England.

 
At 11:55 PM, Blogger Maria said...

Thank you for bringing us this melodic poem, John. It rings a bell with me, too. I wrote a paper about Tennyson's long poem of grieving called In Memoriam in grad. school. Seems like a distant memory...but Tennyson's insights live on...

 
At 12:10 AM, Blogger John Ettorre said...

It struck me too, Maria. I'll have to check out In Memoriam as well. Can't say I was that familiar with Tennyson before, but judging by this poem, I've been missing something.

 

Post a Comment

<< Home