He May Not Choose

Here is another poem by Clare Harner collected in "Choir Practice," a monthly column of contemporary poetry selected by Charleston poet Ellen M. Carroll--this one appeared in the Charleston, South Carolina Evening Post on February 12, 1937; found on genealogybank.com.

Charleston Evening Post - February 12, 1937

 

HE MAY NOT CHOOSE

Man is ruler of mind,

     But the heart is master of man:

He can chart his course, to find

     That love can change the plan

-- Clare Harner, Kansas.

Let the Surging Waters . . .

From "Choir Practice" (a monthly column of contemporary poetry selected by Ellen M. Carroll) in the Charleston Evening Post (Charleston, South Carolina), February 15, 1936:

Charleston, SC Evening Post - February 15, 1936
via GenealogyBank

LET THE SURGING WATERS . . .
Give him a rugged voyage, Lord,
As he comes to Death's uncharted fiord.

In Life, he loved the rampant gale
   And laughed to watch the jagged dart
   Of lightning tear the clouds apart,
And shouted with joy at the wind and hail.

He never thought that calm was right . . .
   Quarter was given but never sought,
   Nor peace desired by him, who fought
And thrilled to feel the urge to fight.
Lord, give him a plunging ship—
He would not rest on a quiet trip.
—Clare Harner, Kansas.