Invincible Truth
Get the truth once uttered, and ’tis like
A star newborn that drops into its place,
And which, once circling in its placid round,
Not all the tumult of the earth can shake.
—James Russell Lowell.
The Swan’s Song
You think that upon the score of foreknowledge and divining I am infinitely inferior to the swans. When they perceive approaching death they sing more merrily than before, because of the joy they have in going to the God they serve.
—Socrates.
The Way to be Happy
How pleasant it is, at the end of the day,
No follies to have to repent,
But reflect on the past, and be able to say:
My time has been properly spent!
When I’ve finished my task with all patience and care,
And been good, and obliging, and kind,
I lie on my pillow and sleep away there
With a happy and peaceable mind.
Instead of all this, if it must be confest
That I careless and idle have been,
I lie down as usual, and go to my rest,
But feel discontented within.
Then, as I dislike all the trouble I’ve had,
In future I’ll try to prevent it,
For I never am naughty without being sad,
Or good without being contented.
—Jane Taylor.
Alternate Reading: James 1: 2-18.