Sterling A. Brown (Sterling Brown), "Thoughts of Death" (1928)
Crowd over my happiness
Like dark clouds
Over the silver sickle of the moon.
Death comes to some
Like a grizled gangster
Clubbing in the night
To some
Like an obstinate captain
Steadily besieging barriers
To some
Like a brown adder
Lurking in violet speckled underbrush
To some
Like a gentle nurse
Taking their toys and stroking their hot brows.
Death will come to you, I think
Like an old shrewd gardener
Culling his rarest blossom ...
Published in Opportunity, August 1928