Poems of Cheer

Excerpt: ...says, "Listen!" and upon my ear    Revealed, as are the visions to my sight, The voices known as "Beautiful" come near    And whisper of the vastly Infinite. Great, blue-eyed Truth, her sister Purity, Their brother Honour, all converse with me, And kiss my brow, and say, "Be brave of heart!" O holy three! how beautiful thou art! The Night says, "Child, sleep that thou may'st arise    Strong for to-morrow's struggle." And I feel Her shadowy fingers pressing on my eyes:    Like thistledown I float to the Ideal - The Slumberland, made beautiful and bright As death, by dreams of loved ones gone from sight, O food for souls, sweet dreams of pure delight, How beautiful the holy hours of Night! ALL FOR ME The world grows green on a thousand hills -    By a thousand willows the bees are humming, And a million birds by a million rills,    Sing of the golden season coming. But, gazing out on the sun-kist lea,    And hearing a thrush and a blue-bird singing, I feel that the summer is all for me,    And all for me are the joys it is bringing. All for me the bumble-bee    Drones his song in the perfect weather; And, just on purpose to sing to me,    Thrush and blue-bird came North together. Just for me, in red and white,    Bloom and blossom the fields of clover; And all for me and my delight    The wild Wind follows and plays the lover. The mighty sun, with a scorching kiss    (I have read, and heard, and do not doubt it) Has burned up a thousand worlds like this,    And never stopped to think about it. And yet I believe he hurries up    Just on purpose to kiss my flowers - To drink the dew from the lily-cup,    And help it to grow through golden hours. I know I am only a speck of dust,    An individual mite of masses, Clinging upon the outer crust    Of a little ball of cooling gases. And yet, and yet, say what you will,    And laugh, if you please, at my lack of reason, For me wholly, and for me still,...