I think of the souls that are straying,
In shadows as black as night,
Of hands that are groping blindly
In search of the shining light;
Of hearts that are mutely crying,
And praying for just one ray,
To lead them out of the shadows,
Into the better way.
I think of the Father's children
Who are trying to walk alone,
Who have dropped the hand of the Parent,
And wander in ways unknown.
Oh, the paths are rough and thorny,
And I know they cannot stand.
They will faint and fall by the wayside,
Unguided by God's right hand.
And I think of the souls that are yearning
To follow the good and true;
That are striving to live unsullied,
Yet know not what to do.
And I wonder when God, the Master,
Shall end this weary strife,
And lead us out of the shadows
Into the deathless life.
1869
[ONLY A KISS]
Once, when the summer lay on the hilltops,
And the sunshine fell like a golden flame,
Out from the city's dust and turmoil
A gallant, fair-faced stranger came--
Came to rest in our humble cottage
Till the winds of autumn should blow again,
To walk in the meadow and lie by the brooklet,
And woo back the strength, that the town had slain.
I was young, with the foolish heart of a maiden
That had never been wooed, and the stranger bland
Awoke that heart from its idle dreaming,
And swept the strings with a master-hand.
I remember the thrill, and the first wild tremor,
That stirred its depths with a sweet surprise,
When I glanced one day at the handsome stranger,
And caught the gaze of his deep, dark eyes.
My cheek grew red with its tell-tale blushes,
And the knitting dropped from my nerveless grasp;
He stooped, and then, as he gracefully gave it,
He held my hand in a loving clasp;
We said no word, but he knew my secret,
He read what lay in my maiden heart,
No vain concealing was needed longer
To hide the tremor his voice would start.
We walked in the meadow and by the brooklet,
My sun-browned hand in his snowy palm;
He said my blushes would shame the roses,
And my heart stood still in a blissful calm.
He stroked my tresses, my raven ringlets,
And twined them over his finger fair;
My eyes' dark splendor was full of danger,
He said, for Cupid was lurking there.
And once he held me close to his bosom,
And pressed on my lips a loving kiss;
Oh! how I tremble with shame and anger,
Even now, as I think of this--
But in that moment, I thought that heaven
Had suddenly opened and drawn me in,
And kissed with passion the lips, so near me,
Nor dreamed I was staining my soul with sin.