Aliens

By Grace Ingles Frost

O ye who walk where no shadow falls
To darken the sun-kissed day,
Can ye sense the need when a brother calls,
Who perishes by the way?

O ye whose protected feet ne’er tripped
On the cruel jutting stone,
Can ye agonize for those who’ve slipped,
As they traveled their path alone?

O ye who have never felt the fangs
Of a gnawing hunger’s want,
Are ye in haste to appease the pangs
Of the specter wan and gaunt?

O ye who have never known the dart
Of the archer grim and hoar,
Can ye comfort bring to the wounded heart
’Yond the close-shut, wreath-draped door?

O ye who walk where no shadow falls
To darken the sun-kissed days,
Ye are fenced about by golden walls,
Ye know naught of other ways.

(1914)