IS there no place where I might rest?
No harbour for my soul?
Must I go roaming on unblest,
Without a chart or goal?
Go searching for a place where peace
May soothe away my pain;
Some lonely nook where ills may cease,
And nothing be all gain?
And yet, with all the pain and tears,
That lonely sorrows bring;
Though life’s besetting woes are fears,
To hope’s frail staff I cling.
My fears are hopes in joy’s disguise,
My hopes are fears in flight,
Which seek an earthly paradise,
Beyond the range of sight.
So nestle, pain, you constant friend,
Close to my longing heart—
What matter how the story end—
And yet there is a place I know,
Where all griefs are forgot—
A breast to which I ever go,
E’en knowing it is not.
I go to that dear place to lose
All fears, all woes, all pains;
It is the paradise I choose,
Where life eternal reigns!
Where life is drawn anew from springs,
Which flow with every bliss,
And to me joy celestial brings
New hope with every kiss!
Alas, the breast of love is wide,
Too precious for one life,
And others cannot be denied—
For what is love but strife?
So, ever seeking, trudge and roam,
Through hours of chill and gloom,
And make the silent night your home,
Roam on, until a morn shall rise,
When you will wake from rest,
And know you have found paradise,
At last, upon her breast.