How marvelous that we should be,
And conscious of eternity,
Yet fettered by mortality,
And caught up in frivolity.
As young and eager spirits grow,
Embracing that which doth engage,
So choosing what and who to trust,
Yet knowing we'll return to dust.
And as the journey takes its toll,
On all who make this life their goal,
Possessions and infatuations,
Mature at first, yet come to naught.
So fear and loathing grip the mind,
Vacuity engulfs the soul,
The portent of the silent grave,
Deranges meaning day by day.
For those who wend the higher way,
Envisioning a brighter day,
The prospect of an endless night,
Is not a thought they have to fight.
Through faith and hope and charity,
We build a grand eternity,
And even if we're all but right,
Our living will be warm and bright.
For hope and meaning do enthrall,
Without them we are, oh so small,
And if we come to see the light,
A wondrous future is a might.
And so my children, choose this day,
Whom and what ye shall obey,
For as you sow so shall ye reap,
And what you choose, that shall ye keep.
