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...DOMESDAY BOOK: REV. PERCY FERGUSON by EDGAR LEE MASTERS WHEN WILL LOVE COME? by PAKENHAM THOMAS BEATTY SUMMER NIGHT, RIVERSIDE by SARA TEASDALE THE LAKE ISLE OF INNISFREE by WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS THE PRETTY REDHEAD by GUILLAUME APOLLINAIRE SIR RUPERT THE FEARLESS; A LEGEND OF GERMANY by RICHARD HARRIS BARHAM |