Poems (Howard)/Be Kind to the Aged

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Be Kind to the Aged.
Be kind to the aged who sorrow have known,  Whose way has been rugged and steep; Now, over the hill, who are treading alone  The valley where shadows lie deep.
With reverence look on their whitening hair  That a halo of glory appears; A beautiful crown like an aureole fair  Bequeathed to the fullness of years.
Be kind to the aged whose counsels have been  Like blessings from patriarch-lips; A richer possession than any within  The wealth-laden Orient-ships.
Ere long we shall miss them, for soon it must be  Their tottering footsteps shall reach The shore of that limitless, unexplored sea  That breaks on Eternity's beach.
Be kind to the aged—the cycle of Time  As swiftly-revolving shall bring The winter of Life with its desolate rime  To you, who are now in its spring.
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Then brighten their pathway, their burden take on  Till Life with its trials be past; 'Twill be a sweet thought when from earth they are gone,  And Heaven will bless you at last.

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