Spirit Of A Great Control

Spirit of a Great Control,
    Gird me with thy strength and might,
Essence of the Over-Soul -
    Fill me, thrill me with thy light;
Though the waves of sorrow beat
    Madly at my very feet,
Though the night and storm are near,
    Teach me that I need not fear.

Though the clouds obscure the sky,
    When the tempest sweeps the lands,
Still about, below, on high,
    God's great solar system stands.
Never yet a star went out.
    What have I to fear or doubt? -
I, a part of this great whole,
    Governed by the Over-Soul.

Like the great eternal hills,
    Like the rock that fronts the wave,
Let me meet all earthly ills
    With a fearless heart and brave;
Like the earth that drinks the rain,
    Let me welcome floods of pain,
Till I grow in strength to be
    Worthy of my source in Thee.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Ella Wheeler Wilcox was an American author and poet, born on November 5, 1850, and died on October 30, 1919. She was known for her works expressing optimistic views and moral lessons. Her most famous book was 'Poems of Passion'. Her poem 'Solitude' contains the famous lines, 'Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you weep alone'. Over her career, Wilcox became popularly known as a 'people's poet'.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Night

Ella Wheeler Wilcox, Simple Poetry

What They Saw

Ella Wheeler Wilcox, Simple Poetry

The Tavern Of Last Times (At Box Hill, Surrey)

Ella Wheeler Wilcox, Simple Poetry

Lean Down.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox, Simple Poetry

English

Suggested Poems

Explore a curated selection of verses that share themes, styles, and emotional resonance with the poem you've just read.

Courage

Whether the way be dark or light
    My soul shall sing as I journey on,
As sweetly sing in the deeps of night
    As it sang in the burst of the golden dawn.

Nothing can crush me, or silence me long,
    Though the heart be bowed, yet the soul will rise,
Higher and higher on wings of song,
    Till it swims like the lark in a sea of skies.

Though youth may fade, and love grow cold,
    And friends prove false, and best hopes blight,
Yet the sun will wade in waves of gold,
    And the stars in glory will shine at night.

Though all earth's joys from my life are missed,
    And I of the whole world stand bereft,
Yet dawns will be purple and amethyst,
    And I cannot be sad while the seas are left.

For I am a part of the mighty whole;

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

A Song Of Life

In the rapture of life and of living,
    I lift up my heart and rejoice,
And I thank the great Giver for giving
    The soul of my gladness a voice.
In the glow of the glorious weather,
    In the sweet-scented, sensuous air,
My burdens seem light as a feather -
    They are nothing to bear.

In the strength and the glory of power,
    In the pride and the pleasure of wealth
(For who dares dispute me my dower
    Of talents and youth-time and health?),
I can laugh at the world and its sages -
    I am greater than seers who are sad,
For he is most wise in all ages
    Who knows how to be glad.

I lift up my eyes to Apollo,
    The god of the beautiful days,
And my spirit soars off like a swallow,
    And is lost in the light of its ra...

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

A Song Of Life.

In the rapture of life and of living,
    I lift up my heart and rejoice,
And I thank the great Giver for giving
    The soul of my gladness a voice.
In the glow of the glorious weather,
    In the sweet-scented sensuous air,
My burdens seem light as a feather -
    They are nothing to bear.

In the strength and the glory of power,
    In the pride and the pleasure of wealth,
(For who dares dispute me my dower
    Of talents and youth-time and health?)
I can laugh at the world and its sages -
    I am greater than seers who are sad,
For he is most wise in all ages
    Who knows how to be glad.

I lift up my eyes to Apollo,
    The god of the beautiful days,
And my spirit soars off like a swallow
    And is lost in the light of its rays...

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Show Me The Way.

        Show me the way that leads to the true life.
    I do not care what tempests may assail me,
        I shall be given courage for the strife;
    I know my strength will not desert or fail me;
        I know that I shall conquer in the fray:
    Show me the way.

        Show me the way up to a higher plane,
    Where body shall be servant to the soul.
        I do not care what tides of woe or pain
    Across my life their angry waves may roll,
        If I but reach the end I seek, some day:
    Show me the way.

        Show me the way, and let me bravely climb
    Above vain grievings for unworthy treasures;
        Above all sorrow that finds balm in time;
    Above small triumphs or belittling pleasures;
        Up to those heights where...

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Song Of The Spirit

All the aim of life is just
    Getting back to God.
Spirit casting off its dust,
    Getting back to God.
Every grief we have to bear
Disappointment, cross, despair
Each is but another stair
    Climbing back to God.

Step by step and mile by mile -
    Getting back to God;
Nothing else is worth the while -
    Getting back to God.
Light and shadow fill each day
Joys and sorrows pass away,
Smile at all, and smiling, say,
    Getting back to God.

Do not wear a mournful face
    Getting back to God;
Scatter sunshine on the place
    Going back to God;
Take what pleasure you can find,
But where'er your paths may wind.
Keep the purpose well in mind, -
    Getting back to God.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

As By Fire.

        Sometimes I feel so passionate a yearning
    For spiritual perfection here below,
        This vigorous frame, with healthful fervor burning,
    Seems my determined foe,

        So actively it makes a stern resistance,
    So cruelly sometimes it wages war
        Against a wholly spiritual existence
    Which I am striving for.

        It interrupts my soul's intense devotions;
    Some hope it strangles, of divinest birth,
        With a swift rush of violent emotions
    Which link me to the earth.

        It is as if two mortal foes contended
    Within my bosom in a deadly strife,
        One for the loftier aims for souls intended,
    One for the earthly life.

        And yet I know this very war within me,
    Whi...

Ella Wheeler Wilcox