Classic Poem

How fair and facile seems the upland road,
Surely the mountain air is fresh and sweet,
And briskly shall I bear this mortal load
With well-braced sinews and unweary feet;
How dear my fellow-pilgrims oft to meet
O'ertaken, as to reach yon blest abode
We strive together, in glad hope to greet,
With angel friends and our approving God,
All that in life we once have loved so well,
So that we loved be worthy: her bright wings
My willing spirit plumes, and upward springs
Rejoicing, over crag, and fen, and fell,
And down, or up, the cliff's precipitous face,
To run or fly her buoyant happy race!