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Worn Out

By Paul Laurence Dunbar

Topics: classic

You bid me hold my peace     And dry my fruitless tears,     Forgetting that I bear     A pain beyond my years.     You say that I should smile     And drive the gloom away;     I would, but sun and smiles     Have left my life's dark day.     All time seems cold and void,     And naught but tears remain;     Life's music beats for me     A melancholy strain.     I used at first to hope,     But hope is past and, gone;     And now without a ray     My cheerless life drags on.     Like to an ash-stained hearth     When all its fires are spent;     Like to an autumn wood     By storm winds rudely shent,--     So sadly goes my heart,     Unclothed of hope and peace;     It asks not joy again,     But only seeks release.

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"You bid me hold my peace..."

"Worn Out" is a quintessential example of Paul Laurence Dunbar's signature style... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...

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Author:Paul Laurence Dunbar

"You bid me hold my peace..." by Paul Laurence Dunbar

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Paul Laurence Dunbar

About Paul Laurence Dunbar

Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872–1906) was an American poet and novelist who was one of the first African-American writers to gain national prominence. His poems in dialect—including "When Malindy Sings"—and standard English explore Black life with humor, pathos, and dignity.

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"As lone I sat one summer's day,     With mien deje..."

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