Lost Star

When the creation was new and all the stars shone in their first
splendor, the gods held their assembly in the sky and sang
`Oh, the picture of perfection! the joy unalloyed!’

But one cried of a sudden
—`It seems that somewhere there is a break in the chain of light
and one of the stars has been lost.’

The golden string of their harp snapped,
their song stopped, and they cried in dismay
—`Yes, that lost star was the best,
she was the glory of all heavens!’

From that day the search is unceasing for her,
and the cry goes on from one to the other
that in her the world has lost its one joy!

Only in the deepest silence of night the stars smile
and whisper among themselves
—`Vain is this seeking! unbroken perfection is over all!’