Living
Joy and Duty
From The Poems of Henry van Dyke (1925)
Living
"Joy is a Duty,"--so with golden lore
The Hebrew rabbis taught in days of yore,
And happy human hearts heard in their speech
Almost the highest wisdom man can reach.
But one bright peak still rises far above,
And there the Master stands whose name is Love,
Saying to those whom weary tasks employ:
"Life is divine when Duty is a Joy."
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Codex Note
From "Epigrams, Greetings, and Inscriptions".
Cite this poem
MLA
Dyke, Henry van. “Joy and Duty.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/vandyke/106/.
Chicago
Dyke, Henry van. “Joy and Duty.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/vandyke/106/.
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