Page:Life of William Blake 2, Gilchrist.djvu/180

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SELECTIONS FROM BLAKE'S WRITINGS.

OPPORTUNITY.

He who bends to himself a joy
Does the winged life destroy;
But he who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity's sunrise.


If you trap the moment before it's ripe,
The tears of repentance you'll certainly wipe;
But if once you let the ripe moment go
You can never wipe off the tears of woe.


SEED SOWING.

'Thou hast a lapful of seed
And this a fair country.
Why dost thou not cast thy seed
And live in it merrily?'


'Shall I cast it on the sand
And turn it into fruitful land?
For on no other ground can I sow my seed
Without tearing up some stinking weed.'