 | Sabbation (1838) |  |
120
[One time I was allowed to steer]
I
One time I was allowed to steerThrough realms of azure light;—
Henceforth, I said, I need not fear
A lower meaner flight:
But here shall evermore abide,
In light and splendour glorified.
II
My heart one time the rivers fed,Large dews upon it lay;
A freshness it has won, I said,
Which shall not pass away,
But what it is, it shall remain,
Its freshness to the end retain.
121
III
But when I lay upon the shore,Like some poor wounded thing,
I deemed I should not ever more
Refit my shattered wing—
Nailed to the ground and fastened there:
This was the thought of my despair.
IV
And when my very heart seemed dried,And parched as summer dust,
Such still I deemed it must abide;
No hope had I, no trust
That any power again could bless
With fountains that waste wilderness.
V
But if both hope and fear were vain,And came alike to nought,
Two lessons we from this may gain,
If aught can teach us aught—
One lesson rather—to divide
Between our fearfulness and pride.
| Sabbation (1838) | |