Hope Can Vanquish Fear

Winter's dreary gray and clouded sky casts
Dark shadows o'er the windows of the soul.
Sun's rays struggle and compete along vast
Expanses of that battlefield, the whole
Of which reflects that wintertime within
The deepest parts of my own mind and heart,
Which ache and long for spring to come again
With beauty, and its newness fresh impart!
As cold winds bear down, pressing through to bone,
And rolling clouds keep light from breaking through,
Despair can settle in as quite at home -
And yet, tenacious rebel not subdued
Is hope that waits, that knows the buds are near;
And clinging to that, hope can vanquish fear!