"Fire and Ice", by Robert Frost

Some say the world will end in fire
Some say in ice
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire
But if it had to perish twice
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction, ice
Is also great
And would suffice.

--Robert Frost

I've always liked this poem, possibly because it is so easy to memorize and comes up in conversation surprisingly often. I also used it in high school as the intro for impromptu speeches at debate tournaments; it's a marvelously flexible poem and you can make it fit almost any subject.

However, while I like it for its ease and utility, I don't believe it. Not that I prefer ice over fire, but that I don't believe the world ends. Phases end; communities end; eras end; other people end; friendships end; even dispensations end. But the world doesn't end - there is always a tomorrow. There is no such thing as "ending up" because there is no ending. Any theory of the final curtain rings hollow because it will never fall. I find this quite heartening.