Oh, be in God's clear world no dark and troubled sprite! To Christ, thy Master mild, do no such foul despite; But show in look, word, mien, that thou belongst to him, Who says, "My yoke is easy, and my burden light." --Friedrich Rueckert. Let us gather up the sunbeams Lying all around our path; Let us keep the wheat and roses, Casting out the thorns and chaff; Let us find our sweetest comfort In the blessings of to-day, With a patient hand removing All the briars from our way. O give me the joy of living And some glorious work to do! A spirit of thanksgiving, With loyal heart and true; Some pathway to make brighter, Where tired feet now stray; Some burden to make lighter, While 'tis day. True happiness (if understood) Consists alone in doing good. Talk happiness each chance you get--and talk it good and strong! Look for it in the byways as you grimly pass along; Perhaps it is a stranger now whose visit never comes, But talk it! Soon you'll find that you and happiness are chums. 'Tis Being and Doing and Having that make All the pleasures and pains of which mortals partake. To Be what God pleases, to Do a man's best, And to Have a good heart, is the way to be blest. If the weather is cold don't scold, If the weather is wet don't fret, If the weather is warm don't storm, If the weather is dry don't cry; But be cheerful together, whatever the weather. The inner side of every cloud Is bright and shining; Therefore I turn my clouds about, And always wear them inside out, To show the lining. --Ellen Thornycroft Fowler Felkin. Let him that loves his ease, his ease, Keep close and house him fair; He'll still be a stranger to the merry thrill of danger And the joy of the open air. --Richard Hovey. There is no human being With so wholly dark a lot, But the heart, by turning the picture, May find some sunny spot. Let us cry, All good things Are ours, nor soul helps flesh more now Than flesh helps soul. --Robert Browning. AFFLICTION CONSOLATION, TRIAL, ENDURANCE RESIGNATION There is no flock, however watched and tended, But one dead lamb is there! There is no fireside, howsoe'er defended, But has one vacant chair. The air is full of farewells to the dying And mourning for the dead; The heart of Rachel, for her children crying, Will not be comforted! Let us be patient! These severe afflictions Not from the ground arise, But oftentimes celestial benedictions Assume this dark disguise. We see but dimly through the mists and vapors; Amid these earthly damps What seem to us but sad, funereal tapers May be heaven's distant lamps.