Life Is What We Make of It

Life is a jest;
 Take the delight in it.
Laugher is the best;
 Sing through the night of it.
Swiftly the tear
 And the hurt and the ach of it.
Find us down here;
 Life must be what we make of it.

Life is a song;
 Dance to the thrill of it.
Grief's hours are long,
 And cold is the chill of it.
Joy is One's need;
 Let us smile for the sake of it.
This be our creed:
 Life must be what we make of it.

Life is soul;
 The virtue and vice of it,
Strife for a Goal,
 And One's strength is the price of it.
Your life and Mine,
 The bare bread and the cake of it
End in this line:
 Life must be what we make of it.

~Edgar A. Guest