I am a leaf
Of the grand family-tree
I wither and fall and fade away
But the tree lives on . . .

I am a part
Of the huge foliage
I part with my axil
Yet a new leaf is borne
Occupying my axil
And the foliage lives on . . .

I am a link
In the long chain
I know not the origin
I know not the end
The succession I merge
In catenation I blend
But the chain lives on . . .