I think we are too ready with complaint
In this fair world of God's. Had we no hope
Indeed beyond the zenith and the slope
Of yon gray blank of sky, we might be faint
To muse upon eternity's constraint
Round our aspirant souls. But since the scope
Must widen early, is it well to droop,
For a few days consumed in loss and taint?
O pusillanimous Heart, be comforted,-
And, like a cheerful traveller, take the road-
Singing beside the hedge. What if the bread
Be bitter in thine inn, and thou unshod
To meet the flints?-At least it may be said,
"Because the way is short, I thank thee, God!"



About this poem
"Cheerfulness Taught by Reason" was published in Elizabeth Barrett Browning's book "A Drama of Exile: And Other Poems" (H.G. Langley, 1845).

About Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Elizabeth Barrett Browning was born in 1806 at Coxhoe Hall, Durham, England. Some of her books include "An Essay on Mind and Other Poems" (1826), "The Seraphim and Other Poems" (1838) and "Poems before Congress" (1860). Browning died on June 29, 1861, in Florence, Italy.

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This poem is in the public domain. Distributed by King Features Syndicate