At Close of Day

At Close Of Day

The day is done. The ev'ning star is in the sky.
The birds have tuck'd their heads and croon'd a lullaby.
Sunset's faint afterglow is fading in the west
And stillness of the twilight calls the earth to rest.

A calm is over all, the midday cannot know;
A gentle breeze, as from the sea, begins to blow.
A vesper service grows and swells from tree to tree
As birds, arous'd, pour forth their praise in ecstacy.

The twilight fades and slowly deepens into night;
The silver moon arises with her wondrous light;
Shadows of trees, like phantoms, play upon the lawn-
Dear Lord, watch o'er and keep us till the morning dawn.