Poems (Hoffman)/A Wish

by Martha Lavinia Hoffman

For works with similar titles, see A Wish.

A WISH.

I only ask a happy heart,
And broader scope for true ambition;
I would not want a nobler part,
Or loftier position.

I would not dream in marble halls,
Or waste my years in idle splendor;
Not while a true Ambition calls,
And angel guides attend her.

What is a crown, and what a throne,
And what great wealth in golden coffers?
Wisdom and happiness alone
Life's highest promise offers.

A crown may press a maddened brain,
Despair lurk in a golden chalice;
Gay pleasures hide a life of pain,
A broken heart dwell in a palace.

I only ask for strength to toil
At some true work, a heart to love it;
And that no cankering worm may spoil
My life fruit, when unworthy of it.

A happy, useful life will show
Itself reward for best endeavor;
This be my choice, and then I know
It shall go on forever.