If I had known there was so calm a place,
Or one so free, where sorrow held no part,
Or that such kindness lit my Father's face—
These had I earlier sought with all my heart.
If I had known how fleeting in the grasp
Earth's pleasure, or that riches make them wings,
I should have taught my fingers to unclasp,
And then, to touch and handle heavenly things.
But years, dream-misted, must not stay the thought
That presses on, forgoing things behind;
Earth's wealth, it seems to me, is easier bought
Than heaven's; for one must pay with heart and mind,
To Soul subscribed. Yet, blissfully, I choose,
And, in this holy place, take off my shoes.
Poems
THE HOLY PLACE OF PRAYER
From the August 1935 issue of The Christian Science Journal
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