The Poetry Corner

Occupation

By Ella Wheeler Wilcox

There must in heaven be many industries And occupations, varied, infinite; Or heaven could not be heaven. What gracious tasks The Mighty Maker of the universe Can offer souls that have prepared on earth By holding lovely thoughts and fair desires! Art thou a poet to whom words come not? A dumb composer of unuttered sounds, Ignored by fame and to the world unknown? Thine may be, then, the mission to create Immortal lyrics and immortal strains, For stars to chant together as they swing About the holy centre where God dwells. Hast thou the artist instinct with no skill To give it form or colour?Unto thee It may be given to paint upon the skies Astounding dawns and sunsets, framed by seas And mountains; or to fashion and adorn New faces for sweet pansies and new dyes To tint their velvet garments.Oftentimes Methinks behind a beauteous flower I see, Or in the tender glory of a dawn, The presence of some spirit who has gone Into the place of mystery, whose call, Imperious and compelling, sounds for all Or soon or late.So many have passed on - So many with ambitions, hopes, and aims Unrealised, who could not be content As idle angels even in paradise. The unknown Michelangelos who lived With thoughts on beauty bent while chained to toil That gave them only bread and burial - These must find waiting in the world of space The shining timbers of their splendid dreams, Ready for shaping temples, shrines, and towers, Where radiant hosts may congregate to raise Their glad hosannas to the God Supreme. And will there not be gardens glorious, And mansions all embosomed among blooms, Where heavenly children reach out loving arms To lonely women who have been denied On earth the longed-for boon of motherhood? Surely God has provided work to do For souls like these, and for the weary, rest.