Throughout grade school, we learned many a poem as a class. Some of them were silly and fun; others were pleasant and nice. One particular poem, which I still enjoy and remember to this day, is not only nice but there's a sense of hope in the words, too.
The Arrow and the Song
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I shot an arrow into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For, so swiftly it flew, the sight
Could not follow it in it's flight.
I breathed a song into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For who has sight so keen and strong
That it could follow the flight of a song?
Long, long afterward, in an oak
I found the arrow, still unbroke;
And the song, from beginning to end,
I found again in the heart of a friend.
The lyrics of a popular carol were also penned by this famous poet. Perhaps, you may have even heard or sang it during this recent Christmas. Henry W. Longfellow, who had been grieving his wife's death following a tragic accident with fire, wrote,
"I heard the bells on Christmas day.
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men."
In the midst of the Civil War, a time when brother fought against brother, he continued his poem,
"And in despair I bowed my head:
'There is no peace on earth,' I said,
'For hate is strong, and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men!'"
As applicable as it is today, he saw beyond the circumstances to the true hope offered in Christ Jesus,
"Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With peace on earth, good will to men."
So, as this new year begins, may you truly know the peace and hope that comes from knowing Christ as your Saviour.
