And judge none lost; but wait and see,
With hopeful pity, not disdain;
The depth of the abyss may be
The measure of the height and pain
And love and glory that may raise
This soul to God in after days!
—Adelaide A. Proctor.
BE STRONG?
Be strong!
We are not here to play, to dream, to drift;
We have hard work to do, and loads to lift;
Shun not the struggle—face it! 'tis God's gift.
Be strong!
Say not, "The days are evil. Who's to blame?"
And fold the hands and acquiesce—oh shame!
Stand up, speak out, and bravely, in God's name.
Be strong!
It matters not how deep intrenched the wrong,
How hard the battle goes, the day how long;
Faint not—fight on! To-morrow comes the song.
—Maltbie Davenport Babcock.
Who looks to heaven alone to save his soul
May keep the path, but will not reach the goal:
But he who walks in love may wander far,
And God will bring him where the blessed are.
—Henry Van Dyke.
WHERE IGNORANCE IS BLISS
To each his sufferings: all are men,
Condemned alike to groan;
The tender for another's pain,
The unfeeling for his own.
Yet, ah, why should they know their fate
Since sorrow never comes too late,
And happiness too swiftly flies?
Thought would destroy their paradise!
No more—where ignorance is bliss
'Tis folly to be wise. —Thomas Gray.
THE BRAVE AT HOME
The maid who binds her warrior's sash
With smile that all her pain dissembles,
The while beneath her drooping lash
One starry tear-drop hangs and trembles,
Though heaven alone records the tear,
And Fame shall never know her story,
Her heart has shed a drop as dear
As e'er bedewed the field of glory.