Within and Without by George MacDonald — Read

And weep not, though the Beautiful decay / Within thy heart, as daily in thine eyes; / Thy heart must have its autumn, its pale skies, / Leading, mayhap, to winter's dim dismay. / Yet doubt not. Beauty doth not pass away; / Her form departs not, though her body dies. / Secure beneath the earth the snowdrop lies, / Waiting the spring's young resurrection-day, / Through the kind nurture of the winter cold. / Nor seek thou by vain effort to revive / The summer-time, when roses were alive; / Do thou thy work -- be willing to be old: / Thy sorrow is the husk that doth infold / A gorgeous June, for which thou need'st not strive.