title: Vigiliae
text: ^^- ^^ °oVJ^^. ^. .^ /^wa'^ v.<^ /^ife'v -^^.a'' ^> "OvS^" : ^^ -^<*> °:vmy^ .4^ ^-p ,v- 4- °^ . ^...,„^ ... & /^Va.^ v./ /.Slfe\ %^^^ ; 0^ oOJLVv - ^0 o " " - . *0 Ml Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from The Library of Congress http://www.archive.org/details/vigiliaeOOcrou mmx DlGili^ BY /-- M." ELIZABETH GROUSE G. p. PUTNAM'S SONS NEW YORK LONDON 27 West Twenty-third Street 24 Bedford Street, Strand Ufoe Iknicfecrbocftet prcgs 1897 ^"^i-- \'-<> -^c N- T^ 3 JUT my Copyright, 1896 BY M. ELIZABETH GROUSE Entered at Stationers' Hall, London %H tKnCcftcr^ocfter prees, Bevp ISock TO MY LITTLE MOTHER NAN. Contents, PAGE Spray . . i The Harp 3 A Dewdrop 5 A Violet ,7 At Anchor 9 Irrigation ii Comrades .13 Kindred ....... 15 Saved and Lost 17 Comparison 19 Blind Love! 21 The Blossom 23 The  The Vigil 35 "As THE Mountains Are" ... 37 The Triumph 39 V Conteiita* vii PAGE Finite and Infinite . ... . .41 The Bridge 43 Light .... 45 Sure .... 47 The Smile. 49 The Baby. 51 Dawn .... 53 Maidenhood 55 Motherhood 57 Widowhood 59 Eyes .... 61 An Antique Love-Story 63 God's Acre. 71 The Litany 73 June .... 75 The Burden-Bearer. 77 A Child's Question. 79 Spring Memories 81 A Forget-me-not 83 The Lunar Moth 85 Stars .... 87 The Unattainable. 89 Night .... 91 The North Star » . 93 The Last Forget-me-not 97 nPHESE are spray from the ocean of Thought, That surgeth between the shore Of Sleep and the harbor of Death — For Life is Thought evermore. OTRUNG to the highest tension was my harp — I held my breath. Sure but for one were notes prepared so sharp, For Sorrow, twin of Death. But soft and low, like sound of angel's wings, The music came ; In harmony the player eased the strings, Joy was his name. H 2)ewC)rop* /^~\F heaven thou art, from heaven thou earnest, distilled Into earth's night. Invisible until enfolded, filled With heaven's light. Then thou returnest to heaven as we gaze, Yet none may see. Such is the story of our life, our days. For such are we. H IDiolet. T LOST a little thought last night, That once had given me keen delight, And thro' the hours I sought : Till, weary in the morning bright, I strolled upon the hill, and quite Hid in a mass of leaves from sight, Behold, I found my little thought. Ht Hncbor* QUNRISE and God's fresh day, The dew on all the grass ; And in the harbor ships that nestling lay, Unfurl their sails and pass. Sunrise and God's fresh day, Life's craft the waters spurn ; And may the vessels never go astray But home to God return. Sunset and God's tired day Seeks heaven thro' the west — And in the harbor ships that sped away, Now furl their sails and rest. irrigation* "I Tl 7 EE, mischievous thunderheads peeped o'er the mountain, To look at a little town, Then rolling and grumbling, and clapping and tumbUng, They laughed till the tears ran down. II "[7 ROM the receding sky a tear at night was dropt in dew Upon a flower, that cried, '' I 'm here, — do not forget, — I 'm blue Because you leave me and because I 'm always true." 13 QORROW 's to joy a kindred thing, Sunrise and sunset are the same, And autumn 's but another name For memory and hope of spring. 15 Save& anb %05t \/0U beg a written thought — Press me the flower I brought ; Long thro' the years 't will last, Yet all its life be past. 17 Comparison* T^HERE 's naught exists a single one, Nor joy nor grief hath life, Save touched by some comparison To harmony or strife. 19 3BUnD Xove ! T OVE is near-sighted, not blind ; He sees all the beauty in one, The distant remainder to find By comparison, poor and undone. 21 XCbe Blossom^ T^HE roots dig down in the earth be- neath, The broad green leaves in the air unsheathe, All that a poor little flower may breathe, And bear its seed. And I have delved into deepest lore And spread my thoughts into Nature's store All for a little book, no more, A tiny flower, indeed. 23 Ube Streufltb ot TPQleaftnesB* OW often do the clinging hands, tho' weak, Clasp round strong hearts that otherwise would break. Impulse* "/^NLY an Impulse ! '' yet at need It was crystallized to deed. O' Space* ^NE influence makes the sky and mountain blue — " 'T is distance lends enchantment to the view.'' 25 T Meaft? IGHT and unsteady, weak, — did you say? That touch on her hair, that kiss ? Ah, the power is stronger that lifts away. Than the heaviest pressure is. 27 statistics* ** OO many born, so many died to-day — " Thousands of angels passing up and down ; They come to us, they go to wear their crown, And keep 'twixt heaven and earth an open way. 2Q TOEHOLD Life's history since time began : The dewy sweet creation, and the span Of good and evil since, of hope and fear, Between two glorious covers, written here. 31 fovQivcncss. /^ FATHER, when I know Thy sweet forgiveness, *t is my heav- iest load. For even as I go. The knowledge of the distance of the road, From me to Thee, the difference that Thou showed Between us, this is woe Too hard to carry, save that thus for Thee Thy heaviest freighted servant I may be. 33 T^HE wind about the casement moans in pain, In fear the lonely candle shrinks again ; The moths, outside the blind which makes their night, Are thoughts which beat and burn them- selves for light. 35 as tbe iTOottntafns are." HE mountains in the night are like a T dream, Hidden in mist, lest they too stern should seem To darkened eyes ; and more protection so, For he who doubts their presence is some foe, From stranger country. Thus the Lord doth stand, Forever caring for His chosen band. 37 o TLbc Uriumpb* GLORIOUS triumph ! Man has died For fellow-man, — is God denied His love as great to show ? May He not give His dearest one— As many a human heart hath done — And sound love's depth of woe ? Aye truly — and this Love Divine Hath proven more than yours or mine, Both pangs at once to know ! Who can believe in God and Sin, Without the atoning power to win, — That life from death may grow ? For of Sin's lowest deep of shade The opportunity He made His heights of love to show. 39 yinite an& f nfinite* "QURELY, if all are good, then all must be Alike and heaven will show monotony/* I said, and dreamed of light. Prismatic colors quivered in the air. Each separate, perfect in itself, and fair, — While round and thro' and causing all was there One great, all-blending White. 41 T OVE is the keystone of the arch That leads from earth to heaven. Safe over it the millions march — That stone cannot be riven. 43 %iQbt T^HOU one all perfect Light, Our lamps are lit at Thine ; And into darkness, as of night, We go, to prove they shine. 45 Sure* |S love so true ? How tell the worth Of fathers' smiles on childhood given ? By one sure way, the best on earth We learn by what we dream of heaven. 47 Zbc Smile* TO D. B. C. T Tl 7E feel a sunshine in the place, ^ ' And wonder what it may be. 'T is warmth and tenderness and grace, God's smile on us — the baby. 49 XCbe Bab^* A LITTLE hard green bud thy state- What color wilt thou be ? We guess thy parent stalk, yet wait Thine unclosed heart to see. 51 2)awn. TV Tow has returned our Sun so bold And calls the roll on our little sphere. Trees rustle out, each leaf turns gold, As one at a time each cries, " I 'm here." 53 fl^ai^enboo^♦ QWEET and cold as yonder dale, Clothed in mists of purity, Where a crystal river floweth free, — Thou sleepest with thy dreams of me, *' Ere I," quoth Love, " thy sun, prevail.' 55 /iDotberbood. O UCH bended dignity a mother hath ! To heaven's gate alone she trod the path, And brought her child from thence. How low her head — For baby hands its benedictions shed. 57 N TOW is she crowned with perfectness at ^ ^ last. She bends her head no more — the soul hath passed That is apart of hers. Still in earth's strife She labors, knowing that heaven hath her life. 59 "TNEEP in a woman's eyes, More than the laughter lies : — The prisoned thought of generations past Thro' these unconscious windows pleads at last. 6i Bn Hntique %ovc^Stov>s* I. IN the spring-time, just at even, When the dial was marking seven, Came a young man down the garden walk to choose his lady's flower ; Side by side he found them growing, And the queenly rose-bud throwing Quite a shadow o'er the violet, according to the hour. II. For the youth admired her greatly, In that she was tall and stately, 63 an antique %ovc»Stot^ And she wore the evening's colors, so warm and rich and sweet. " You can have no place beside her, In what happiness betide her " Thus he scorned the modest violet that nestled at her feet. III. But the violet was so tiny, So short, and so sunshiny, She could n*t help her looking up, e'en thro' a misty tear. And the world was changed to sweetness^ For she saw it in completeness. Saw it thro* a rainbow promise, made just big enough for her. 65 an antique Xove^Stors IV. She had learned the glorifying Of the tears and of the sighing ; Hope is made of lifted troubles raised to let God's sunshine thro'. Tho' the rose was queen of even, Gazed she in the clear blue heaven, And unconsciously became herself that color pure and true. Life grew better for her teaching, For her fragrance, softly reaching ; That she lived above the earth, and tho' so little, did her best. 67 an antique Xove^Stocs While the rose-bud, slowly losing, Died the death of that quick choosing, The violet blossomed on thro' all the spring-time, ever blest. 6g (5o&'s Here* i^^ OD'S Acre ! yea, God is the sun ^■^^ That quickens here the grain. It knows not death's oblivion ; We sing " Auf wiedersehen." 71 Ube Xitans* '' TX THERE it listeth, the wind blow- eth." So as o'er a wheatfield goeth, Sweeping with a soft low sound, Bowing all heads toward the ground, O'er the congregation there, Spirit born, this voice of prayer, *^ Bending from thy throne on high, Hear our solemn litany/' 73 June. T^HE days have reached meridian of length, It is the year's high noon ; All Nature, in the excess of her strength, Seems, for an hour, to swoon. 75 TLbc 3Bttrben*Bearer. ORD, none who are strong because care-free, Will carry a weight for another : But one who 's enduring and suffering for Thee, Has strength for himself and his brother. 77 H ChiWs (Sincstion. THUMPS in the sky, dear? yes, one naughty cloud Has hit another. See how their eyes flash — hear the scolding loud — TAaf was his brother. 79 Sprfna /SDertiorles* TV TEW things remind us of the old, For oldest things were newest ; And Memory, a friend may be At once first, last, and truest. 8f A a fovQcUmc^nou TINY dewdrop held the wide blue skies In its embrace : By love transfigured, it did crystallize To starlike grace. The lowly heaven incarnate in it there, So great, so small, Makes ever to the downcast eyes the prayer, '' Look over all." 83 Zbc Xunar /IDotb* T NTO the night He strayed, a floating fragment of the light : He caught and cast in shade the candle- rays, That crossed his ways. Into death's fastness, A tiny flying atom of life's vastness, He has gone out — the tale of all our sighing, All life, all dying. 85 A' Stars^ DOWN the face of Evening tears of dew Stood, for departing Day ; Whereat she turned her face from far away — So bright, the drops each caught a tender ray. And till she came again they held it true. 87 Zbc xanattafnable* INFINITE Beauty ! thou art In the Infinite Heart. That which musicians seek, That which the poets speak, Are but a glimpse below — Now but " in part " we know. 89 T O ! the black ship of the Night, Glowing radiantly bright, All her lamps and portholes gleaming, And her search-light o'er us streaming- Laden with a priceless Rest, Passes noiseless, to the west. 91 H Ube IRortb Star* TO A. B. C. IGH in the heaven above God holds thee, My fair North Star. There, where my darkness of distance enfolds thee. Shining afar. God knows I had sunshine, — 't was when thou wert nearer ; Blinded by thee I was lost ; in the night-time the way has grown clearer Over the sea. 93 XTbe Bortb Stat I follow to port, my own lantern still burning. Lead all the way To where thou and I with the flames of our yearning Shall melt in Day. 95 Zbc Xast fovQcUmc^not. A BASHED I stand before thee in the place I leave—no sweetest word I dare to mar Of this, our perfect trust, the perfect grace. Yet all I Ve spoken lies in this one flower. A tear like mine that gazed in heaven's face And straight became a star : — A word like mine ; a dew Dark Evening wept, — there shone bright heaven the best, And crystallized, a tone of color true, 97 Zbc Xa6t fforaets=mes=not With mission highest, because lowliest, Always to breathe its love in clearest hue, To find, in being a heaven, heavenly rest ; — A still, small voice of infinite Silence, Love That yearns, a folding space, our hearts above. 99 r ^°-;^. Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. ^ Neutralizing Agent: Magnesium Oxide « Treatment Date: PRESERVATION TECHNOLOGltb. L.P. 111 Thomson Park Drive Cranberry Township, PA 16066 (724)779-2111 o r\ •* CONGRESS. 