If far from thee he pines in twilight dim,
Mercy, just God! I pray thee on my knees;
His hope in thee, thy tender love for him,
Dear Lord, remember these!
Our souls abide in tenements of clay,
At every step we stumble as we go,
Thou knowest, Lord, how difficult the way
We travel here below.
How hard, amidst the loves, and hopes, and fears
Of this wide world, calmly to do our part,
Nor give its thrilling joys and songs and tears
Too much of our weak heart!
But, oh, my God, I offer unto thee
The blood of Jesus: that all bonds can break,
And lift all burdens. Now, depart from me
Awhile, to that dark lake,
My angel guardian! stir with thy cool breath
His fiery mantle; whisper, soft and low,
Comfort to soothe that anguish worse than death
Souls without God must know.
Let thy fair aureole shine upon his night,
Thy loving arms protect him from his fears;
There all are weeping! let thy voice unite
With those sad sighs and tears.
Point from his prison to the heaven above,
Tell him that thou, when all this pain is done,
Will greet him there — that there the God of love
Is longing for his son.
Tell him no saint, in his ecstatic prayer,
Musing upon the eternal loveliness,
Has ever caught one glimpse of what is there,
That unimagined bliss!
Put thy arms round him, give him sweet relief,
And then, if he should ask who bade thee fly
To soothe his anguish and assuage his grief,
O tell him it was I!
Keep in thy breast, a sacred trust and dear,
His loving pain, his longings and his cries;
Then soar to heaven, and whisper in God’s ear
The echo of his sighs;
And then, from heaven to earth and earthly things,
Come back, for, ah! God knows if I should be
Faithful for long, without thy two white wings
Between the world and me!