Be Kind To Each Other

By Charles Swain

Be kind to each other! —
The night’s coming on,
When friend and when brother
Perchance may be gone! —
Then ‘midst our dejection
How sweet to have earned
The blest recollection
Of kindness — returned! —
When day hath departed,
And Memory keeps
Her watch, broken hearted,
Where all she loved sleeps! —

Let falsehood assail not,
Nor envy disprove, —
Let trifles prevail not
Against those ye love! —
Nor change with to-morrow
Should fortune take wing;
But the deeper the sorrow
The closer still cling! —
Oh, be kind to each other! —
The night’s coming on,
When friend and when brother
Perchance may be gone!