JOSEPH CAMPBELL
(Seosamh MacCathmhaoil)

THE OLD WOMAN

As a white candle
in a holy place,
so is the beauty
of an aged face.

As the spent radiance
of the winter sun,
so is a woman
with her travail done.

Her brood gone
from her,
and her thoughts as still
as the waters
under a ruined mill.

Written in 1881 by Joseph Campbell (Seosamh MacCathmhaoil)