[Editor: This poem by Agnes Neale was published in Shadows and Sunbeams (1890).]
My Lessons.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
To take the bitter with the sweet,
To know that thorns and roses lie
Together underneath our feet.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
That round each storm-cloud’s sombre fold
Is drawn, invisible, perhaps,
But surely drawn, a line of gold
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
That disappointments of to-day
May turn to blessings rich and rare
Some time, not very far away.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
To lay the best-loved task aside,
To see some other take my place,
And still in patience to abide.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
God always sits the fire beside;
That he who rules the furnace heat
Knows when the gold is purified.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
Temptations make us closer cling;
And seek more oft our hiding place.
Beneath the shadow of His wing.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
Of pleasant pasture, still and sweet,
Where silently I wait in peace,
Low at my dear Redeemer’s feet.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
That what we count as keenest loss
Is richest gain, could we but see
The shining crown above the cross.
And you have learned? Yes, I have learned
That in all things God knoweth best;
And, held in His Almighty hand,
In sweet content I wait and rest.
Source:
Agnes Neale, Shadows and Sunbeams, Adelaide: Burden & Bonython, 1890, pages 23-24
Editor’s notes:
Redeemer = in a religious context, and capitalized, Jesus or God
Old spelling in the original text:
knoweth (knows)
oft (often)
Leave a Reply