The Reward
No greater earthly boon than this I crave, That those who some day gather 'round my grave, In place of tears, may whisper of me then, "He sang a song that reached the hearts of men."
James Weldon Johnson
No greater earthly boon than this I crave, That those who some day gather 'round my grave, In place of tears, may whisper of me then, "He sang a song that reached the hearts of men."
In James Weldon Johnson’s short lyric, the speaker imagines his own death and makes a simple, heartfelt request. He isn’t asking for fame, wealth, or even mourning.
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