No giants, ghosts or elephants have dared to come in there 'Coz if they did he'd beat 'em up and chase 'em to their lair. They just hang 'round the children's rooms an' snap an' snarl an' bite An' laugh if they can make 'em yell for help with all their might, But I don't ever yell out loud. I'm not that sort of lad, I slip from out the covers and I crawl in bed with dad. _A Cup of Tea_ Nellie made a cup of tea, Made and poured it out for me, And above the steaming brew Smiled and asked me: "One or two?" Saucily she tossed her head, "Make it sweet for me," I said. Two sweet lumps of sugar fell Into that small china well, But I knew the while I drained Every drop the cup contained, More than sugar in the tea Made the beverage sweet for me. This to her I tried to say In that golden yesterday-- Life is like a cup of tea Which Time poureth endlessly, Brewed by trial's constant heat, Needing love to make it sweet. Then I caught her looking up, And I held my dainty cup Out to her and bravely said: "Here is all that lies ahead, Here is all my life to be-- Will you make it sweet for me?" That was years ago, and now There is silver in her brow; We have sorrowed, we have smiled, We've been hurt and reconciled-- But whatever had to be, She has made it sweet for me. _The Inspiration of the Past_ When melancholy rides the sky and fills The distance with her dust of gloom and doubt, And from despair there seems no gateway out; When the cold blast of disappointment chills The green young buds of hope and the once rosy hills Stand gaunt, forbidding battlements, too stout For faltering strength to master, ere it kills Faith in high purpose, turn your face about. Search the great past, the ages that have gone; Pause and reflect by some remembered grave; At Valley Forge once more with Washington, Learn what it means to suffer and be brave. Or stand with patient Lincoln and believe That what is right, its purpose shall achieve. _The Waiter_ I met him in a college town, a youngster with a grin, And he was sweeping up the floor when I was ushered in. When I had registered my name, he put aside his broom To grab my suitcase from the floor and show me to my room. That night at dinner I beheld that youngster at my side, "We've pork and lamb," said he to me, "potatoes, baked or fried." When I had made my choice of food, he gayly went away And when he next appeared he had my dinner on a tray. "So you're a waiter too?" said I. He chuckled soft and low: "Three times a day it is my job the dishes round to throw. I'm bell hop in the afternoons, between times I'm the clerk, But I can get my lessons when I've finished up my work.