Every Child’s Good Things

I, Nature, give to you, to be yours for ever and ever, the right to the free enjoyment of this world. I give to you the years that are before you, and the world that is about you.

I give to you the Sun by day and the Moon and stars by night, with the power to wake as the Earth rolls into the light of the Sun, and power to sleep when the night comes.

I give to you the beauty of the Earth in the golden hour of dawn, with the vision of the Sun as it climbs above the hills, with the glow of fire across the meadow and the sparkle on the river that runs past. The sight of the new stirring of the life of the world, the sound of all moving things that praise their Maker, the feeling that uplifts the heart as the light breaks on another day, are yours.

I give you the eager hope of spring, with the right to see the slow disrobing of the winter earth and the slow unveiling of her secret treasury. I give to you the untold glory of a summer’s day, with the touch of God in every lane and the fire of the Sun in every rose. I give to you the eternal promise of autumn, with the faith of all growing things in the life that will come again. I give to you the peace of the Earth on a winter’s day, with the robe of stainless white not made with hands. I give to you the full glory of the changing year, and perfect trust in the ways of God that have never failed upon the Earth.

I give to you the quiet of the hilltop, the vision of the smiling world that opens out below, the green fields that stretch far away until they touch the sky. I give you the path that brings you to the valley, with the trees that rise like silent sentinels to guard the peace of the woodland walks where you may be alone. I give you the thrill of heights where a man can think no mean thing, and the calm of the hidden places where little children seek and find the key of the Kingdom of Heaven.

The leaping joy of spring, the glittering dance of summer, the rustling of the leaves in autumn, the stillness and strengthening of the winter, I give to you. I give to you the ceaseless wonder of the day and night, and the seasons as they pass.

I give you the song that has been in the world since the birds began to sing, the joyous hymn of the lark and the plaintive music of the nightingale: the beauty that has been on Earth since flowers began to peep: the silver lamps that have hung in the sky since the stars began to shine.

I give you understanding of the voices of dumb things—the neigh of the horse that a rider loves, the bark of the dog that has been man’s friend throughout the years, and the purring of the cat on the hearth. I give you the music of the day to stir your soul, and the stillness of the night in which you hear, if you listen, the voice of God.

I give you the gentle breeze that kisses the face of a child, and the wind that tosses the ship at sea: I give you tenderness and strength. I give you the charity that comforts the sufferer and the pity that softens the life of the poor. I give you the wisdom of health and the power to build up in your body a holy temple for your soul. I give you the power to think and know and understand, the power to love books and all beautiful things. I give you the power to win the love of little children and the power to hold your head high among men.

I give you the waters of the Earth, with the right to listen to the whisper of the stream as it rises in the hills, to the chatter of the river as it gathers and widens, and to the shout of the cataract as it splashes through the rocks. I give you the beauty of the moving sea when it kisses the Sun, and the vision of the liquid peaks that rise and fall. I give you the slowly creeping waves that have never been still since the seas were made, and the rocks they have ground into golden sands.

I give you the oceans in calm and storm, with the waters that dance in the air, the showers and the winds, the snow that clothes the world anew in the night, the rain that taps on the window, and the rainbow that springs out of the Sun.

I give you, free for ever, with the right to take whom you will, the full enjoyment of the Natural Gallery of everlasting pictures, and the right to see the unveiling of all the sunsets, the covering of the heath with red and gold, the floating past of the clouds that ride like mountain peaks across the sky. I give you access to all the bushes laden with berries, to the daffodils and the violet beds, to the place where ferns and mosses hide, and to the tulips when they hang their heads at night.

I give to you the power to remember and the power to forget, and I give you the strength to forgive. I give you the love of the quiet places where the burden of the petty things will fall away. I give you the right to wander by the brook that babbles o’er the pebbles, to rise early in the morning and see the dew on every buttercup, to lose yourself among the heather and in the field of the cloth of gold.

I give you the Past with its heritage of good and ill. I give you the Present, with the opportunity that knows no bound. I give you the Future, with the years that never end and know no sorrow.

I give to you the long, long thoughts of youth and the memories of the years; the hope of the dawning life, the dream of the days to be, and the looking back. I give you the yearning and the craving that make life sweet. I give you the time of waiting and the time of fulfilment. I give you the spirit that good fortune does not mar nor ill fortune break.

I give you the calm that looks out upon the world and will not be discomforted. I give you the heart that does not quail; the courage that does not flinch; the faith that will not fail in the Valley of the Shadow. I give you the power to believe in the everlasting spirit of the world.

I give you the love of true things, the love of pure things, and the companionship of sweet liberty. I give you the scorn of all ignoble things, the hate of all things evil, and the strength to march breast-forward against them until they are destroyed.

I give you the promise that they shall be destroyed, that the face of the Earth shall be fair, that the mind of man shall be free, that all that come from God shall yet return to Him, that little children yet shall see the Dawn that no man knows.

From Arthur Mee’s Children’s Encyclopedia, Volume 1

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