Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.
For that thy face is fair I love thee not;
Nor yet because the light of thy brown eyes
Hath gleams of wonder and of glad surprise,
Like woodland streams that cross a sunlit spot:
Nor for thy beauty, born without a blot,
Most perfect when it shines through no disguise
Pure as the star of Eve in Paradise,—
For all these outward things I love thee not:
But for a something in thy form and face,
Thy looks and ways, of primal harmony;
A certain soothing charm, a vital grace
That breathes of the eternal womanly,
And makes me feel the warmth of Nature’s breast,
When in her arms, and thine, I sink to rest.”
Excerpt From
Music, and Other Poems
Henry Van Dyke
The wisdom imparted by John Templeton applies to you and me every second of our existence. What are the choices you face at the moment? What can you do to move forward with your life?
THE TIDE RISES, THE TIDE FALLS
The tide rises, the tide falls,
The twilight darkens, the curlew calls;
Along the sea-sands damp and brown
The traveller hastens toward the town,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
Darkness settles on roofs and walls,
But the sea in the darkness calls and calls;
The little waves, with their soft, white hands,
Efface the footprints in the sands,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
The morning breaks; the steeds in their stalls
Stamp and neigh, as the hostler calls;
The day returns, but nevermore
Returns the traveller to the shore,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.”
Excerpt From
The Complete Poetical Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
You have to live spherically – in many directions. Never lose your childish enthusiasm – and things will come your way.
