 | The Poetical Works of Walter C. Smith |  |
CONFIDENCE
Strange, that for all the wrecks upon the shore,
And all that, helpless, drift about the sea,
We never dream that such our fate may be,
Or shrink from life that may be one wreck more!
And all that, helpless, drift about the sea,
We never dream that such our fate may be,
Or shrink from life that may be one wreck more!
But fresh hope comes to each fresh soul, as light
Dawns on the waters, dimpling in their waves,
With running laughter tripping o'er the graves
Where former hopes lie buried out of sight.
Dawns on the waters, dimpling in their waves,
With running laughter tripping o'er the graves
Where former hopes lie buried out of sight.
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And we are sure, and eager for the race,
And crowd all sail, and deem not for an hour
That life is not worth living, or that power
Is not in us to master time and space.
And crowd all sail, and deem not for an hour
That life is not worth living, or that power
Is not in us to master time and space.
Is it that Nature, with a wanton's smile,
Allures, but to delude, and break our hearts,
Or worse than break them, when the soul departs
Of nobleness, that dwelt in us erewhile?
Allures, but to delude, and break our hearts,
Or worse than break them, when the soul departs
Of nobleness, that dwelt in us erewhile?
Or does she seem to us what we desire,
Though herself true, and hating all deceit,
And all we hear is but our own heart's beat,
And all we see but what our dreams inspire?
Though herself true, and hating all deceit,
And all we hear is but our own heart's beat,
And all we see but what our dreams inspire?
| The Poetical Works of Walter C. Smith | |