Poems (Barker)/The Noble Calling

by Alice J. Green Barker

The Noble Calling.

Onward, brother, nobly onward!
 Swell the ranks of truth and right,
Let your light be grand and glorious;
 For the cause of justice fight.
Shrink not from the field of labor
 Farthest from the path of fame;
Look not forward to the hour
 When a nation speaks your name.

For if wealth and fame should meet you
 Half way up the rugged steep,
At the close of life, my brother,
 Would you not have cause to weep
That your only aim had ever
 Been to reach the sparkling gem,
Which a nation proudly gave you
 To adorn your diadem?

E'er pursue in life the pathway
 That will aid your fellow man;
Be a lamp to guide them homeward;
 Strive to help them all you can.
Angel hands will point the glory
 That awaits you over there;
Death will ne'er corrupt such jewels,
 They are ever bright and fair.

Gently raise a fallen brother,—
 Jesus' lost and weary sheep;
And, remembering His example,
 Lead them up the rugged steep.
Just across the mystic river,
 In that pure and sinless land,
Angel forms will gladly watch you,
 And will lend a gentle hand,

To direct your footsteps ever
 Higher up the mountain side,
Nearer to the happy mansions
 Just across the flowing tide.
When the toilsome march is ended
 And the pain of life has fled,
Oh! what joy to see some wanderer
 That your words have homeward led;

Or to hear the gentle blessing
 Of the trusting little child
That your hands had gently guided
 To the savior undefiled.
Onward, brother, nobly onward!
 Swell the ranks of truth and right,
Let your light be grand and glorious;
 In the noblest calling fight.