POEMS

DON’T GIVE UP

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will;

When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill;

When the funds are low and the debts are high

And you want to smile but you have to sigh;

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a failure turns about

When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don’t give up, though the pace seems slow,

You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than

It seems to a faint and faltering man,

Often the struggler has given up,

When he might have captured the victor’s cup,

And he learned too late when the night slipped down,

How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out,

The silver tint of the cloud of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are –

It may be near when it seems so far.

So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit:

It’s when things seem worst you must not quit.

Edgar A Guest (another offering from Dorothy Smith’s Bequest)

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"It’s impossible," said pride.

"It’s risky," said experience.

"It’s pointless," said reason.

"Give it a try," whispered the heart.

Unknown

Found by Mavis Fletcher

* * * * * * * * * * * *

GOD'S ALBUM

We may write our names in albums,

We may trace them in the sand,

Or chisel them in marble

With a firm and skilful hand,

But soon each page is sullied,

Soon each name will fade away,

And a monument will crumble

As all earthly hopes decay.

But there is another album,

Full of leaves of snowy white,

Where no name is ever tarnished,

But for ever pure and bright.

In the Book of Life, God’s album,

May our names be penned with care,

And may all who have here written

Write their names forever there.

Anon