Yes! there are real mourners - I have seen
A fair, sad girl, mild, suffering, and serene.
These are the opening lines of the poem The Mourner. The poet says that the real mourners are present on this earth as he has seen a girl who doesn't let anyone know how the woes are destroying her on the inside. The girl appears serene on the outside, but she is dying inside because of the loss of her beloved.
But when her wearied parents sunk to sleep,
She sought her place to meditate and weep;
Then to her mind was all the past display'd,
That faithful memory brings to sorrow's aid.
The poet, in these lines, describes the mourning girl. The girl does all her tasks and duties of the day, she dresses neatly and one can't seem to show her the pity because she appears alright. But when, at night, the girl's parents go to sleep, her real emotions come flowing out through her eyes. The mourning girl thinks about the past and weeps over the memories.
The ring, so worn as you behold,
So thin, so pale, is yet of gold:
The passion such it was to prove--
Worn with life's care, love yet was love.
The poet opens the poem A Marriage Ring by describing a ring of gold which is worn out, thin and pale but no matter how it looks, its worth is still of gold. Similarly, the passion in a marriage gets worn out with life's care but the love in it remains forever.
