BETTER THINGS
Better to smell the violet cool than sip the glowing wine;
Better to hark a hidden brook than watch a diamond shine.
Better the love of gentle heart than beauty's favors proud,
Better the rose's living seed than roses in a crowd.
Better to love in loneliness than bask in love all day;
Better the fountain in the heart than the fountain by the way.
Better be fed by a mother's hand than eat alone at will;
Better to trust in God than say, My goods my storehouse fill.
Better to be a little wise than in knowledge to abound;