O! lady, we receive but what we give,
And in our life alone doth nature live;
Ours read more

O! lady, we receive but what we give,
And in our life alone doth nature live;
Ours is her wedding garment, ours her shroud!

The thorns which I have reap'd are of the tree
I planted--they have torn me--and I bleed!
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The thorns which I have reap'd are of the tree
I planted--they have torn me--and I bleed!
I should have known what fruit would spring from such a seed.

A bad ending follows a bad beginning.

A bad ending follows a bad beginning.

How far your eyes may pierce I cannot tell;
Striving to better, oft we mar what's well.

How far your eyes may pierce I cannot tell;
Striving to better, oft we mar what's well.

That from small fires comes oft no small mishap.

That from small fires comes oft no small mishap.

Perfection of means and confusion of ends seem to characterize
our age.

Perfection of means and confusion of ends seem to characterize
our age.

Contentious fierce,
Ardent, and dire, spring from no petty cause.

Contentious fierce,
Ardent, and dire, spring from no petty cause.

So holy writ in babes hath judgment shown
When judges have been babes; great floods have flown
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So holy writ in babes hath judgment shown
When judges have been babes; great floods have flown
From simple sources, and great seas have dried
When miracles have by the greatest been denied.

Consequences are unpitying. Our deeds carry their terrible
consequences, quite apart from any fluctuations that went
before--consequences that read more

Consequences are unpitying. Our deeds carry their terrible
consequences, quite apart from any fluctuations that went
before--consequences that are hardly ever confined to ourselves.