Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, LITTLE JOHNNY, by ELIZABETH DOTEN


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

LITTLE JOHNNY, by                    
First Line: Sing not, o blessed angels!
Last Line: "and helpers of their joy."
Alternate Author Name(s): Doten, Lizzie
Subject(s): Angels; Death - Children; Graves; Love; Sympathy; Death - Babies; Tombs; Tombstones; Empathy


SING not, O blessed angels!
To those who truly mourn,
But come with gifts of healing,
For heart-strings freshly torn.
Ah! human hearts are tender,
And wounds of love are deep:
Sing not, O blessed angels!
But "weep with those who weep."

Come not, O spirit-teachers!
With wisdom from above,
But come with soft, low whispers
Of sympathy and love.
Truths seem uncertain shadows
Beneath the clouds of care;
Come, then, in friendly silence,
And strengthen them to bear.

What will ye bring, O angels,
To soothe the troubled breast?
"We will bring the cherished loved one
From the mansions of the blest.
Like a wandering dove returning,
He shall nestle in each heart;
They will feel his blesséd presence,
And their sorrow shall depart.

"We will lead them from their darkness
Out to the shining light,
And scenes of heavenly beauty
Shall greet their longing sight.
There shall they see their loved one,
Free from his earthly pain;
Their souls shall cease from sorrow,
And shall ask him not again.

"O, we only opened gently
His little prison door;
He stepped into the sunshine,
And then returned no more.
He dwells not now in weakness,
In the spirit's narrow cell,
But yet remains forever
To those who loved him well."

What will ye bring, O teachers!
To those who suffer loss?
"We will bring them faith, and patience,
And strength to bear their cross,—
To bear it bravely, calmly,
Although the way seem long,
Till hearts that bled with anguish
Shall burst into a song.

"They shall walk in Faith's clear sunshine,
With souls renewed in youth,
And the little child shall lead them
To a knowledge of the truth.
Tell them the loving angels
Watch o'er their darling boy—
They are sharers of their sorrow,
And helpers of their joy."





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