Shadows

Gloomy the earth on the shadowless days,
Sad and monotonous, ghostly with haze,
Gloomy the sky by the clouds overrun,
Days without shadow are days without sun.
Bright is the earth where the dark shadows lie,
Cast by the beams of a glittering sky.
Praise for the shadows when earth days are done;
For the darker the shadows, the brighter the sun.