Classic Poem

In this lifted quiet place
I have learned anew God's grace,
Grace of mountain-peak and snow,
And the lonely lake below,
Spruce and aspen's gentleness,
And the ruddy sun's caress,
Here where stars are never far
But intimate as lovers are —
Happy he whose trail ends
By the hearth-fires of such friends.

There is more than meets the eye
In this gracious hostelry:
There is something man can find
Only in the quiet mind,
Only in the faith that tells
More than lettered rubric spells,
Only in the heart that knows
More than blazing altar shows, —
In the wilderness have trod
Feet that find their way to God.

Prairie, mountain-peak, and sea
Pentecostal are to me;
And in faces have I seen
Eyes that knew the Nazarene
When He passed them footing slowly
The hushed way to the mountain holy:
John from Patmos in the sun
Saw God's love-anointed one, —
Blest be he whose ears have heard
Daily that unuttered Word.