O LIFE! without thy chequered scene Of right and wrong, of weal and woe, Success and failure, could a ground For magnanimity be found; For faith, 'mid ruined hopes, serene? Or whence could virtue flow? Pain entered through a ghastly breach -- Nor while sin lasts must effort cease; Heaven upon earth's an empty boast; But, for the bowers of Eden lost, Mercy has placed within our reach A portion of God's peace. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE LACHRYMATORY by CHARLES TENNYSON TURNER THE TENT ON THE BEACH: 2. THE WRECK OF RIVERMOUTH by JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER PEPITA by THOMAS BAILEY ALDRICH THE BALLAD OF ORISKANY by OBADIAH CYRUS AURINGER INVITES POETS AND HISTORIANS TO WRITE IN CYNTHIA'S PRAISE by PHILIP AYRES PSALM 139 by OLD TESTAMENT BIBLE |