'A man may do both,' said Aragorn. 'For not we but those who come after will make the legends of our time...'
- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Two Towers, The Riders of Rohan
Legends of Time
Those who once walked the green earth in daylight
Come to us now in great tales by the firelight.
Heroic deeds, done of great valour;
Contending with evil and immense power.
Kings, and princes, and women of might;
The great wars and fierce battles that they did fight.
Romance, and sorrow, betrayal of trust;
Victory, friendship, corruption and lust.
Men of all sorts, dependent on Hope;
Elves of ancient wisdom, remote;
Dwarves, of their most obdurate habit;
And even the very peculiar Hobbit.
Orcs and goblins and Uruk-hai unnumbered;
Sauron, the Maia, from Valinor long sundered;
Ents, the tree-herders, unhasty and tall;
Wizards, well-spoken, to benefit them all.
Of these a great many tales have been told:
The races and peoples and beings of old;
Of dark times, and dark ways, terror and strife;
Of good deeeds, of good men, renewal of life.
These are the stories and legends of time;
Great ancient tales told by the fire sublime.
