Kate Louise Wheeler

“ He climbs the height; the vale beneath him lies, And angels guide his faltering steps aright; To gain the summit manfully he tries,— Above he sees the day’s eternal light;
But looking downward, to the valley fair, Where, in youth’s morn, his weary feet have trod, He sees his fellow traveler lingering there And, in his strength, he leads him up to God.
Happy is he who finds the heavenly way And lends to doubting souls a helping hand; God’s light directs him, step by step, each day,— God’s glory waits him in the Promised Land. ”

“ The weary day is past and gone, The angels sing again Of glory to the God on high And “Peace, good will toward men.”
We seem to hear beyond the night The music soft and sweet; And laying all our burdens down, We rest at Jesus’ feet.
Our trusting hearts and hope of heaven Have banished doubt and care, And Christ is waiting to forgive,— To answer every prayer.
This love immortal is our guide, And shorter seems the way; Beyond the stars and night of earth Is home and endless day. ”

“ Adown the years they come, like fleeting dreams,— No sound disturbs the hush of daylight fair, Save song of bird, or many murmuring streams, Like sweetest music filling all the air.
Near, and yet nearer, till each sunlight ray Reveals no shadows, as they onward glide, But two young friends, upon life’s unknown way, Eager to journey o’er a path untried.
Youth knows no fear; the day is near at hand And Mother Earth breathes forth a welcome sweet; Thus do they wander o’er the sun-lit land Until they come to where the two paths meet. ”

“ Home to our Father in that Land of Light, Where angels guard her while we watch and pray, Where we shall meet her if we live aright,— For Home with Jesus is not far away;
And when, some day, we hear our Saviour’s voice, We’ll breathe to Him above a thankful prayer, And hearts, once filled with sorrow, will rejoice That those we love are waiting for us there ”

“ When the work of day is over, And the weary hours are past, Home lights, gleaming in the distance, Fill the soul with joy at last.
Tho’ the trials have been many, And the world has proved unkind, Lights of home make burdens lighter And refresh the wearied mind.
Some one where the lights are shining, Knows that you are very near; Some one waits to bid you welcome, And invites to rest and cheer. ”

“ Earth is not filled with sunshine bright— The rain-drops sometimes fall; And buds that might have seen the light May blight at tempest’s call.
Life is not filled with sunshine bright— The tear-drops sometimes fall; And hopes that might have seen the light May blight at sorrow’s call.
But God, who sends the rain and tears And knows what things are best, Will also send the faith that cheers And guides us to our rest. ”

“ Like swallows who have found a summer sun, And frozen buds which wake to springtime light, So starved Humanity, which seeks awhile The warmth and light of earth’s most friendly smile, Bursts into fuller life and glories new By strength of influence daily used aright.
As song of bird invites to melody Some other soaring songster of the air, Until a chorus, wakened far and near, Fills quiet hour with music and with cheer, So playful Zephyr may Æolus wake To scatter clouds and make the earth more fair. ”

“ God gave thee power to comfort and to teach, And lift souls up to heights they strive to reach, And yet thy prayers ascend to His white throne, Pleading for comfort for thyself alone; Thou prayest too for wisdom and release, And hands to draw thee upward into peace, Forgetting that which Christ would have thee know,— Peace comes to those who make peace here below; Forgetting that His arms shall draw thee near Only as thine are held to others here ”

“ We never know what we can do, Until we try; He who accomplishes the least, Stands idly by; While he who makes the most of life, Keeps plodding on, And earns at least his perfect rest When strength is gone.
We never know what we can do, Until we dare; He who would gain the victor’s place, Must not despair; For tho’ life’s burdens seem too great, The way too long, He will succeed who conquers doubt By prayer and song.
[Pg 82]
VOLUME ONE.
How beautiful is youth that grandly gleams With bright illusions and aspiring dreams! ”

“ A hush is stealing o’er me, Like the quiet of the night; I can but breathe a blessing For the dear ones gone from sight.
Tho’ feeble steps are silenced, And the smiles no more I see, Yet there, where Home remaineth, They will wait to welcome me.
Alone! and yet in dreaming I can live and love once more The days of happy childhood, In the sunshine gone before.
And tho’ my light is fading And the night must come I know, Yet the sunbeams will be stealing Thro’ the rifts of long ago.
[Pg 69]
FAITH.
Faith is needed every day,— Faith to work and faith to pray ”

“ But tho’ roots may interlace And each base is joined to base, Till the friendly trees incline And their branches touch and twine, Yet, while aging day by day, They part union on their way Till the welcome sunlight seeks To crown insulated peaks.
Side by side the great men rise Towards the heights of brighter skies; But tho’ minds together blend And each friend is joined to friend, Till their spirits interchange And their thoughts have fullest range, Yet while aging day by day, They diverge upon life’s way Till Young Genius claims his own And they choose to soar alone. ”

“ The Here and There are not so far apart, As oft’ they seem to Sorrow’s waiting heart; The waking love that Here no more shall sleep Will There the souls in perfect union keep. God does not mean, tho’ Heaven be bright and fair, To break the strands between the Here and There. The heart that loves shall love beyond the skies ”

“ Not the flower that blooms the tallest, Nor whose petals are the whitest, But whose fragrance is completest Satisfies my eyes.
Not the brook that laughs the loudest, Nor whose waters are the purest, But the brook that runs the fleetest To the mill and sea. Not the soul that soars the quickest, But whose faith in God is surest, And whose record is the neatest Is the soul for me.
[Pg 111]
ENDEAVOR.
Life’s morning hour is never quite complete If climbing upward at the break of day We fail to show to others, whom we meet, New glories found along the heavenly way. ”

“ Faith to love and faith to charm, Faith to quicken, faith to calm; Faith to bless and faith to chide, Faith to follow, faith to guide; Faith to prove and faith to know, Faith to stay and faith to go; Faith to urge and faith to keep, Faith to waken, faith to sleep; Faith to do and faith to dare, Faith to bear and faith to share; Faith to bind and faith to break, Faith to give and faith to take; Faith to stand and faith to yield, Faith to heal, faith to be healed, Faith to pardon, faith to seek, Faith to listen, faith to speak; Faith to wait and faith to try, Faith to live and faith to die. ”

“ When sunset light has faded from our sight, And darkness comes to tell us of the night, We sleep, refreshed from earthly care and sorrow, To waken to another hopeful morrow.
When sun and stars shall no more please our sight, And darkness comes to tell us of the night, We sleep, unmindful of earth’s joy and sorrow, To waken to a never-ending morrow.
[Pg 93]
LIFE’S DAY.
When the morn has breathed her story, And the noon of life is past, When the sunset’s deepening glory Fills the waiting soul at last ”

“ Tho’ her life lose it’s sunshine and burdens oppress, Yet the love of the mother will never be less; [Pg 8] Tho’ her children may wander away from the fold, And the world shuts them out in the darkness and cold, Tho’ their friends may prove faithless and sin may allure, Yet of mother’s true love they can ever be sure. Tho’ to far away lands they may wilfully roam, The fond mother’s prayer will be guiding them home. ”

“ Not he who soars to heights of rank and fame, But he who climbs, is he who bears Christ’s name; Not he who wins, but he who daily tries Shall best deserve the joys of Paradise.
[Pg 86]
WHY?
Why do I love thee and how do I know That thou art the dearest of all to me? Why do the moments, wherever I go, Seem brighter and better because of thee?
Why, mid the work of the long, weary day, Are burdens of life more easy to bear? Why pause I so often, upon life’s way, To ask God’s blessing for thee in prayer? ”

“ Fear not the way, God knows it all, His love is ever guiding; Be true to-day, And hear His call, In faith and works abiding.
Look not before, Nor yet behind, The present is thy blessing; Doubt Him no more, But gladness find, His gracious gifts confessing.
Lift up thy heart, And like a King Rule o’er it, faithless never; Do well thy part, Till earth shall sing, And Heaven be thine forever.
[Pg 79]
TWO PATHS.
When eastern skies are bathed in mists of gray, And all the heralds of the night are gone, I watch two shadows, moving o’er the way, Beyond the dim, uncertain light of morn. ”

“ No longer shall we sleep away the hours, But wake to life as wake the budding flowers,— Breathing to others, in our life’s brief day, Fragrance and beauty as they pass our way. No longer shall we wait for better days, But, like the bird, sing forth His endless praise, And in the hour new hope and pleasure bring To those who listen but care not to sing. ”

“ Suffering gives us the richest thoughts That to literature can belong;— In poetry it strikes the sweetest note And inspires the tenderest song.
Our troubles are but the inlets small That shall lead to the human soul, Thro’ which the Comforter comes to heal And to strengthen us for the Goal.
The rarest of saints are afflicted By One who doth know what is right; And the stars shall ever shine brightest That contend with the darkest night.
[Pg 110]
MY CHOICE.
Not the bird that soars the highest, Nor whose plumage is the brightest, But the bird that sings the sweetest Is the bird I prize. ”

“ The sunny smiles that make life bright And bless the passing hours, Will do for souls that need the light What sunshine does for flowers.
[Pg 27]
“WHAT SHALL IT PROFIT?”
Will it matter, by and by, When he calls us each by name, Whether you, or whether I, Win earth’s honor and earth’s fame?
Onward, in the rush of life, For the prizes of the race, Shall we mingle in the strife Crowding others out of place?
Shall we seek Ambition’s goal, Where the earthly treasures stay, Passing by some helpless soul Who has lost the Heavenly way? ”

“ While past mistakes possess the minds of men The heart itself will have no power to cheer.
To-day we breathe, we move, we speak, we live, To-morrow’s sun for us may never rise. All that we do, or hope to do, or say, Must be confined within our short to-day, And all the blessings that our life can give Must be out-poured before the daylight dies. [Pg 52]
As we shall hope for nobler, higher things, While up life’s mount we seek the Heavenly way We must not measure, lest we may despair, The height to be yet gained by work and prayer ”

“ Each has a chance among the rest To do his worst or do his best And his must be the choice,— Either to break the golden rule And cause confusion in life’s school, Or heed the Master’s voice.
The discipline is not severe, Altho’ the Master we should fear To keep us from a wrong; There is no need to sigh and fret, Or to despair, with lashes wet, Because our task seems long. ”

“ The days have passed, the hours are passing yet. Each moment wasted by regretful sigh Will count as worthless in the by and by, Till life itself, which God to man has given, Will be unworthy of the peace of Heaven. ”

“ The youth, from all sorrow, temptation and care, Seeks the warm mother heart and finds comfort there; The woman, whose virtues are whispered above, Will daily thank God for the dear “mother love;” The man, be he lover, or husband, or brother, Will ever hold sacred the love of his mother. ”

“ If they climb to the height of honor and fame, They should whisper, in credit, the dear mother name. Her love inspires all that is noble and good, And Purity reigneth o’er sweet mother-hood. Tho’ the great word applaud, the praise of another Is nothing compared with the praises of mother. The earth home is dreary, when she is away, Her presence adds sunshine to each changing day, And Heaven, in it’s glory, will be the more fair, When the spirit of mother shall find entrance there.
[Pg 9]
HIDDEN TREASURES.
Beneath the waves of ocean blue, The precious pearls are lost from view ”

“ The spell of Christ-life, deepening o’er the soul, Refines and softens conduct, speech, and mind; And what men think, and feel, and do, and say, Will make the earth less hopeful or more gay,— Will show a daring demon to the world, Or prove the loving God to mortal-kind. ”

“ The soul that God to mortal man did give Shall some day be exempt from earthly strife, And from its narrow prison cell at last It shall go forth the glorious light to see, When chains are loosened, which now hold it fast, By Death, the warden, who shall set it free ”

“ We are crossing little bridges That we never reach at all; We are climbing mighty mountains That are not upon our way; We are looking for a twilight While the morning sunbeams fall, And the troubled thoughts of future Take the gladness from to-day.
We are losing Nature’s glories, Which are meant for us to see; We are finding weeds and grasses Where the pretty flowers grow; We are looking for the storm clouds Which perchance may never be, And we quite forget the sunshine Which to-day is ours below. ”

“ When angels hush our darling’s cooing cries, What words are there to comfort those who weep?
When broken playthings, lying on the floor, And treasured toys have all been put aside, When baby wakes to play with them no more, And fondest hopes that brightened life have died ”