Because I had loved so deeply,
Because I had loved so long,
God in His great compassion
Gave me the gift of song.

Because I have loved so vainly,
And sung with such faltering breath,
The Master in infinite mercy
Offers the boon of Death.

About the poem
"Compensation" was originally published in Dunbar's 1905 collection "Lyrics of Sunshine and Shadow."

About Paul Laurence Dunbar
Paul Laurence Dunbar was born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1872. He was a prolific writer who wrote poems, novels, short stories and a play. Dunbar died in 1906 in Dayton.

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This poem is in the public domain.
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