Classic Poem

Drop an unkind word or careless —
Just a flash and it is gone,
But a half a hundred ripples
Go a-circling on and on;
They keep spreading, spreading, spreading
From the center as they go,
And there is no way to stop them,
Once you've started them to flow.

Drop an unkind word or careless —
In a minute you forget,
But it started waves to flowing
And its ripples circle yet:
And perhaps in some sad pilgrim
A great wave of tears you've stirred,
And disturbed a life that's happy
When you dropped that unkind word.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness —
Just a flash and it is gone,
But a half a hundred ripples
Go a-circling on and on,
Bearing hope and joy and comfort
On each splashing, dashing wave,
Till you can't conceive the volume
Of the kind word that you gave.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness —
In a minute you forget,
But the gladness that it started
Swells and circles even yet;
And you've rolled a wave of comfort,
Whose sweet music can be heard
Over miles and miles of water,
Just by dropping a kind word.