Clear eyes, that dance with inward light; Clear shining skin, so firmly white; Muscles that tingle for the road Or lightly lift a gallant load; Serenity of steady nerves; Bright beauty's soft alluring curves; Alert response to sight and sound And fragrance of the year's glad round, -- Ah, what is fame and what is wealth, Matched with the rich renown of health? And what does luxury possess, Bought with dyspepsia's wretchedness? Let all my singing days be spent With honest labor, calm content; Let sturdy body, eager mind, Their partnership superbly bind; And let my life's clear currents run Beneath the shining of the sun. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...GUARDIANSHIP by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON TO BAYARD TAYLOR by SIDNEY LANIER CANTICLE OF THE RACE by EDGAR LEE MASTERS LENTEN GREETING; TO A LADY by GEORGE SANTAYANA ELEGY: THE GHOST WHOSE LIPS WERE WARM; FOR GEOFFREY GORER by EDITH SITWELL HOOKS AND EYES by KAREN SWENSON |