Woman's Sphere [pp. 104]

WOMAN'S SPHERE.
Then endure unto the end and you shall be saved:
saved in heaven, where the wicked cease from
troubling, and the weary are at rest-where God
shall wipe all tears from their eyes-where the inhabitants shall never say I am sick-where there
is no more curse-where they need not the sun, for
the Lord is the sun, and the Lamb is the light
thereof. Blessed place, may it be our eternal home!
R. W.
-—.o e 044 —
Original.
WOMAN'S SPHERE.
INSCRIBED TO MISS A. B.
BY L. J. CIST.
"She filled her woman's sphere on earth."
"HER woman's sphere!"-and tell us, thou
To whom our hearts in reverence bow Thou who so well dost fill it here Say how could nobler sphere be given
This side the white-robed choirs of heaven,
Than, rightly filled, is " woman's sphere?"
Where lieth woman's sphere?-Not there,
Where strife and fierce contentions are;
Not in the bloody battle-field,
With sword and helmet, lance and shield;
Not in the wild and angry crowd,
Mid threat'nings high, and clamors loud;
Not in the halls of rude debate
And legislation, is her seat;
Nor yet in scenes of weak display Of vanity, with its array
Of pride and selfishness-not here,
Lieth true-hearted "WOMAN'S SPHERE,"
What then is "woman's sphere?"-The sweet
And quiet precincts of her home;
Home!-where the blest affections meet,
Where strife and hatred may not come!
Home!-sweetest word in mother-tongue,
Long since in verse undying sung!
Home!-of her holiest hopes the shrine,
Around which all her heart-strings twine!
There, loved and loving-safe from fear,
Lies ever woman's noblest sphere!
There hers it is a power to wield,
To which the warrior's lance and shield,
Helmet and sword, are powerless The god-like gift to save and bless!
To save-the erring from his sin,
And back to paths of virtue win;
To bless-in every stage of life,
As MOTHER-DAUGHTER-SISTER-WiFE!
As MOTHER!-Sweet and holy tie,
First known, best loved in infancy! From her our vital breath we draw,
Her gentle looks our infant law;
Her love our refuge in alarm;
Her watchful care our shield from harm;
Her lessons the first precepts given
To form for earth and fit for heaven;
Her love-unselfish, ever known
To seek our interest, not her ownThrough all this changing scene extends:
With life begun-with death but ends!
As DAUGHTER!-' Tis upon her laid
To be the aged mother's aid;
In one, the varied ties to blend
Of child, companion, helper, friend;
Repay in thousand gentle ways,
The love that crowned her childish days;
From thousand cares of age to save,
And smooth life's pathway to the grave:
And Iteaven's benignest gifts are shed
Ever on such a daughter's head!
As SISTER!-He who doth not prove
Her kindness, cannot know its worth!
How all unselfish that pure love
That in a sister's heart hath birth!
Playmate! companion up from youth!
Gentle and sympathizing friend!
Whose lips like hers, with faithful truth,
So well can kind persuasion blend?
Thou who hast such-that long on earth
She may be spared thee, kneel and pray!
Such too had I-nor knew her worth,
Till she was called from earth away!
A pious sister! who can tell
How oft to her it may be given,
To save a brother's feet from hell To lead his wandering steps to heaven!
But more than all'tis hers, as WIFE!
To wield her mightiest influence still;
To check and temper manhood's strife,
And mold his purpose to her will:
For where is he who does not feel
That he could easier burst through steel,
Than wound that fond and faithful heart,
Of his own more than self, a partOr spurn the gentle thraldom known
To seek his happiness alone!
O! woman hath, in every phase,
Controlling influence o'er our ways;
But chief, as man's companion high
'Tis hers to guide his destiny:
And from that day our parents erst
Were driven from Eden's blissful shadeWhen both had fall'n-yet woman first,
Man by her weakness then betrayedAll potent still, for good or ill,
Hath been the force of woman's will;
And mightier, with each added year,
Grows WOMAN'S POWER, in WOMAN'S SPHERE!
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