The Village Blacksmith (1840)<\/p>\n
Under a spreading chestnut-tree<\/p>\n
\u2060The village smithy stands;<\/p>\n
The smith, a mighty man is he,<\/p>\n
With large and sinewy hands,<\/p>\n
And the muscles of his brawny arms<\/p>\n
Are strong as iron bands.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
His hair is crisp, and black, and long;<\/p>\n
His face is like the tan;<\/p>\n
His brow is wet with honest sweat,<\/p>\n
He earns whate’er he can,<\/p>\n
And looks the whole world in the face,<\/p>\n
For he owes not any man.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Week in, week out, from morn till night,<\/p>\n
You can hear his bellows blow;<\/p>\n
You can hear him swing his heavy sledge,<\/p>\n
With measured beat and slow,<\/p>\n
Like a sexton ringing the village bell,<\/p>\n
When the evening sun is low.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
And children coming home from school<\/p>\n
Look in at the open door;<\/p>\n
They love to see the flaming forge,<\/p>\n
And hear the bellows roar,<\/p>\n
And catch the burning sparks that fly<\/p>\n
Like chaff from a threshing-floor.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He goes on Sunday to the church,<\/p>\n
And sits among his boys;<\/p>\n
He hears the parson pray and preach,<\/p>\n
He hears his daughter’s voice<\/p>\n
Singing in the village choir,<\/p>\n
And it makes his heart rejoice.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
It sounds to him like her mother’s voice<\/p>\n
Singing in Paradise!<\/p>\n
He needs must think of her once more,<\/p>\n
How in the grave she lies;<\/p>\n
And with his hard, rough hand he wipes<\/p>\n
A tear out of his eyes.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Toiling,\u2014rejoicing,\u2014sorrowing,<\/p>\n
Onward through life he goes;<\/p>\n
Each morning sees some task begin,<\/p>\n
Each evening sees it close;<\/p>\n
Something attempted, something done,<\/p>\n
Has earned a night’s repose.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Thanks, thanks to thee, my worthy friend,<\/p>\n
For the lesson thou hast taught!<\/p>\n
Thus at the flaming forge of life<\/p>\n
Our fortunes must be wrought;<\/p>\n
Thus on its sounding anvil shaped<\/p>\n
Each burning deed and thought.<\/p>\n
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Village Blacksmith (1840) Under a spreading chestnut-tree \u2060The village smithy stands; The smith, a mighty man is he, With large and sinewy hands, And<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[701],"tags":[4210,744],"class_list":["post-25291","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-quote-of-the-day","tag-henry-wadsworth-longfellow","tag-quote-of-the-day"],"yoast_head":"\n