Work. Henry van Dyke (1852-1933). Poems of Sentiment: VI. Labor and Rest. Bliss Carman, et al., eds. 1904. The World's Best Poetry. VI. Fancy

Bliss Carman, et al., eds. The World’s Best Poetry.
Volume VI. Fancy. 1904.

Poems of Sentiment: VI. Labor and Rest

Work

Henry van Dyke (1852–1933)


LET me but do my work from day to day,
In field or forest, at the desk or loom,
In roaring market-place, or tranquil room;
Let me but find it in my heart to say,
When vagrant wishes beckon me astray—	5
“This is my work; my blessing, not my doom;
Of all who live, I am the one by whom
This work can best be done, in the right way.”
Then shall I see it not too great, nor small,
To suit my spirit and to prove my powers;	10
Then shall I cheerful greet the laboring hours,
And cheerful turn, when the long shadows fall
At eventide, to play and love and rest,
Because I know for me my work is best.