Abide the Adventure
| Author | Oppenheim, James |
|---|---|
| Genre | Poetry |
| Journal or Book | Songs for the New Era |
| Publisher | New York: The Century Co. |
| Year of Publication | 1914 |
| Pages | 39-40 |
| Additional information | - |
Abide the Adventure
NEITHER from the woe,
Nor from the war,
Think ye to escape...
It helps nothing that ye shut your eyes, oh, cloistered
cowards and gilded idlers!
For neither shall cushion nor buffet ease the sharp
shock of life,
Neither shall delicate music in hushed hotels drown out
the roar of the battling streets...
Neither shall wingéd wheels carry you away to the
place of peace...
How can ye go from yourselves, deluded ones?
Make but a world of rest:
Swifter than striking lightning
The Aladdin of the soul builds in the heart
A world of unresting hell...
And, oh ye shunners of war, ye are gruelled in a war
of the spirit,
In a battle of nerves and blood-vessels and the ghosthaunted
brain,
And the death of delight...
Hence, whip ye to battle:
Live ye to the uttermost:
Abide the adventure.
