by Robert Louis Stevenson.
What man may learn, what man may do,
Of right or wrong of false or true,
While, skipper-like, his course he steers
Through nine and twenty mingled years,
Half misconceived and half forgot,
So much I know and practise not.
Old are the words of wisdom, old
The counsels of the wise and bold:
To close the ears, to check the tongue,
To keep the pining spirit young;
To act the right, to say the true,
And to be kind whate'er you do.
Thus we across the modern stage
Follow the wise of every age;
And, as oaks grow and rivers run
Unchanged in the unchanging sun,
So the eternal march of man
Goes forth on an eternal plan.
1 comment:
Denise, I happen to be reading a bio on RLS. All I really knew of him was the time he wrote a letter in defense to the attack by the Rev. Hyde against Fr. Damien.
I was never really a big fan of poetry but am slowly starting to love some of them. Thanks for posting beautiful poetry on your blog.
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