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The Child And The Sage

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You say, O Sage, when weather-checked,     "I have been favoured so     With cloudless skies, I must expect     This dash of rain or snow."     "Since health has been my lot," you say,     "So many months of late,     I must not chafe that one short day     Of sickness mars my state."     You say, "Such bliss has been my share     From Love's unbroken smile,     It is but reason I should bear     A cross therein awhile."     And thus you do not count upon     Continuance of joy;     But, when at ease, expect anon     A burden of annoy.     But, Sage this Earth why not a place     Where no reprisals reign,     Where never a spell of pleasantness     Makes reasonable a pain?     December 21, 1908.

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"You say, O Sage, when weather-checked,..."

"The Child And The Sage" is a quintessential example of Thomas Hardy's signature style... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...

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