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Rebuke
I paused in the still September day
To salute a comrade along the way;
"A comrade in arms" I almost said
And smiled at such nonsense, for instead
The battle waged was a silent one;
No sign of sword, or sound of gun—
A fragrant violet quite alone
Was growing there in a path of stone.
Flung down, no doubt, by some vagrant breeze
In shade of the mighty redwood trees.
What hours of dread did it bravely meet
When men passed by on hurrying feet?
With courage bred in the wintry gloom
And valiant heart it had dared to bloom!
Alone in the barren soil it grew
And by my side there is always—you!