I know I know, I've already done i. But I was thinking this morning and I have to do inexorable, too.
Rock Me to Sleep
Backward, turn backward, O Time, in your flight,
Make me a child again just for tonight!
Mother, come back from the echoless shore,
Take me again to your heart as of yore;
Kiss from my forehead the furrows of care,
Smooth the few silver threads out of my hair;
Over my slumbers your loving watch keep;—
Rock me to sleep, mother, – rock me to sleep!
Backward, flow backward, O tide of the years!
I am so weary of toil and of tears,—
Toil without recompense, tears all in vain,—
Take them, and give me my childhood again!
I have grown weary of dust and decay,—
Weary of flinging my soul-wealth away;
Weary of sowing for others to reap;—
Rock me to sleep, mother – rock me to sleep! (I miss my father, too.)
Let's hear it for Google! Memory and emotion pulled up the first two lines of this (not the entire poem here) and Google found everything else for me, including information about the poet, aka Florence Percy, who first published at the age of 15. Elizabeth Akers Allen (1832-1911) published several books of poetry and had three husbands, one of whom died during the Civil War. Rock Me To Sleep was a favourite during the war. And that's all I have to say about that.
My point and purpose was to try to understand some of what I'm feeling and remembering. i'm sure I'm not alone. It's that time of year. Inexorable.