The Change Has Come
The change has come, and Helen sleeps—
Not sleeps; but wakes to greater deeps
Of wisdom, glory, truth, and light,
Than ever blessed her seeking sight,
In this low, long, lethargic night,
Worn out with strife
Which men call life.
The change has come, and who would say
"I would it were not come to-day?"
What were the respite till to-morrow?
Postponement of a certain sorrow,
From which each passing day would borrow!
Let grief be dumb,
The change has come.
This poem is in the public domain.
"The Change Has Come" appeared in The Collected Poetry of Paul Laurence Dunbar (Dodd, Mead and Company, 1913).
Paul Laurence Dunbar
Paul Laurence Dunbar, born in 1872 and the author of numerous collections of poetry and prose, was one of the first African American poets to gain national recognition.