IN PARTING
When time draws nigh to say goodbye
To those I prize and hold,
And the soul of me puts out to sea,
And earth grows dark and cold;
God grant me pow'r in that last hour
To wave a fond adieu
To those who grieve because I leave
From out the soundless blue.
And may they know as I must go
Across death's borderland,
I liv'd my days on life's highways
Seeking to understand;
Seeking to give to those who live
The flowers they have won
Ere they have found the plot of ground—
Sacred spot in the sun.
To those who weep for me asleep.
May God bring comfort there;
And may He bless with His caress
The heart that feels despair:
For I will wait within the gate
Where angel faces smile
To meet them when we meet again
In just a little while!
GROWING OLD
A little nearer the setting sun;
A little nearer to God and man;
More ready to help the falt'ring one
Who struggles behind life's caravan.
A little more used to changing fate;
A little more tender of heart toward those
Who once were wont to condemn and hate.
Who once paid the kindest act with blows.
Loving to live and let others live;
A little nearer the golden rule;
More apt to refuse—more willing to give
A hand to the strugglers in life's hard school.
More willing to count the many joys
That are mine in this sun-blest day;
More ready to leave the strife and noise
To watch little children at their play.
Growing old! But if it please God
As the changing seasons onward roll.
Let me follow the trail so many have trod
With Youth and Hope and Love in my soul!
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