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Friendship Poems

Table of Contents

  1. No Man is an Island by John Donne
  2. Addition by Anonymous
  3. Who? by Emily Dickinson
  4. Croesus Discovers by Anonymous
  5. Chums by J. W. Foley
  6. Friendship by Jean Racine, Thomas Fry
  7. Friendship by William Francis Barnard
  8. To Friendship by Benjamin Hine
  9. I. by Christopher Pearse Cranch
  10. Friendship by Henry David Thoreau
  11. Pray for Me by Amos Russel Wells
  12. A Soul I Met by Ruby Archer
  13. The Enchanted Traveller by Bliss Carman
  14. A Live Wire by Anonymous
  15. Till the End by Emily Dickinson
  16. If anybody's friend be dead by Emily Dickinson
  17. Solitude by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
  18. Friendship by Eliza and Sarah Wolcott
  19. Old Friends Together by Charles Swain
  20. The House by the Side of the Road by Sam Walter Foss
  21. Friendship's Tone And Laugh by Richard Lynott O'Malley
  1. Meeting of Friends After a Long Absence by Eliza and Sarah Wolcott
  2. The Meeting of the Waters by Eliza and Sarah Wolcott
  3. Parting of Three Friends by Eliza and Sarah Wolcott
  4. The Kindly Neighbor by Edgar A. Guest
  5. Friendship by Ralph Waldo Emerson
  6. The Memory of the Heart by Daniel Webster
  7. Parted Friends by James Montgomery
  8. Our Friendship by Ellen P. Allerton
  9. Written in an Album by Hannah Flagg Gould
  10. Violets by Ruby Archer
  11. Man and Dog and Horse and Tree by Annette Wynne
  12. The Friendly Tree by Annette Wynne
  13. Sun, Dear Sun by Annette Wynne
  14. Value of Friends by Bernhardt Paul Holst
  15. Friends by Bernhardt Paul Holst
  16. Abiding Friendship by Bernhardt Paul Holst
  17. Marigold by Hilda Conkling
  18. What Would Life Be? by Annie Armstrong
  19. The Arrow and the Song by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
  20. Encouragement by Douglas Malloch
  21. To One Who Pledged Her Friendship by Freeman E. Miller
  22. Love and Friendship by Emily Brontë
  23. The Old Familiar Faces by Charles Lamb
  24. True Friends by Eugene J. Hall
  25. Upon the Sand by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
  26. Friendship by Edith Franklin Wyatt
  27. Faith by Frances Anne Kemble
  28. Friendship by Samuel Johnson


Always remember, if you want to have friends, than be one.

  1. No Man is an Island

    No man is an island,
    Entire of itself,

    - John Donne
    No Man is an Island
    by John Donne

    No man is an island,
    Entire of itself,
    Every man is a piece of the continent,
    A part of the main.
    If a clod be washed away by the sea,
    Europe is the less.
    As well as if a promontory were.
    As well as if a manor of thy friend's
    Or of thine own were:
    Any man's death diminishes me,
    Because I am involved in mankind,
    And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
    It tolls for thee.

  2. Addition

    But wheresoe'er these friends may be,
    Each is an increment for me,—
    My life is all a happy sum;
    I'll add as long as figures come!

    - Anonymous
    Addition
    by Anonymous

    I am myself—poor, foolish, weak—
    Plus other men to whom I speak,
    The stronger men with whom I walk,
    And watch their ways and heed their talk.

    Some are alive with whom I tread,
    And some are those that men call dead;
    Some I accost in shop or street,
    And some in blessed books I meet.

    But wheresoe'er these friends may be,
    Each is an increment for me,—
    My life is all a happy sum;
    I'll add as long as figures come!

  3. Who?

    by Emily Dickinson

    My friend must be a bird,
    Because it flies!
    Mortal my friend must be,
    Because it dies!
    Barbs has it, like a bee.
    Ah, curious friend,
    Thou puzzlest me!

  4. Croesus Discovers

    by Anonymous

    I thought I was a poor man all my days,
    And only late I knew
    Riches that filled my soul with glad amaze,
    All-marvellous to view.

    How am I shamed that I have hung my head
    The way a pauper bends!
    I should have walked the earth a king instead;
    My friends—I had my friends!

  5. Chums

    But a boy has one boy he can go to,
    For help all the time—that's his chum.

    - J.W. Foley
    Chums
    by J. W. Foley

    If we should be shipwrecked together
    And only had water for one,
    And it was the hottest of weather
    Right out in the boiling sun,
    He'd tell me—no matter how bad he
    Might want it—to take a drink first;
    And then he would smile—oh, so glad he
    Had saved me!—and perish from thirst!

    Or, if we were lost on the prairie
    And only had food for a day,
    He'd come and would give me the share he
    Had wrapped up and hidden away;
    And after I ate it with sadness
    He'd smile with his very last breath,
    And lay himself down full of gladness
    To save me—and starve right to death.

    And if I was wounded in battle
    And out where great danger might be,
    He'd come through the roar and the rattle
    Of guns and of bullets to me,
    He'd carry me out, full of glory,
    No matter what trouble he had,
    And then he would fall down, all gory
    With wounds, and would die—but be glad!

    We're chums—that's the reason he'd do it;
    And that's what a chum ought to be.
    And if it was fire he'd go through it,
    If I should call him to me.
    You see other fellows may know you,
    And friends that you have go and come;
    But a boy has one boy he can go to,
    For help all the time—that's his chum.

  6. Friendship

    Give me the friend, who, like the evergreen,
    Retains his first appearance, though the storm
    Beat with tremendous fury on his head;

    - Jean Racine, Thomas Fry
    Friendship
    by Jean Racine, Thomas Fry

    While fair prosperity illumes our path,
    Numerous pretended friends and counsellors
    Bask in the sunshine with deceitful smiles;
    But when the winter of distress draws nigh,
    They sink like summer-insects at the blast.
    Give me the friend, who, like the evergreen,
    Retains his first appearance, though the storm
    Beat with tremendous fury on his head;
    And through the dreary winter cheers the eye,
    With spring in expectation. Thus the plant
    That clings so closely to the sturdy oak,
    Quits not its fond attachment e'en in death,
    But still embraces its once thriving friend.


    Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.

    – Romans 12:15
    The Bible, KJV
  7. Friendship

    Amidst the loathing and the scorn
    Some hands will faithful be;
    If honors thicken such will yet
    Give love's simplicity.

    - William Francis Barnard
    Friendship
    by William Francis Barnard

    We cannot rise too high for this;
    We cannot fall too low.
    Or praised as gods, or in the dust,
    It follows where we go.

    It is not gained through noble deeds;
    It shrinks not from life's hurts.
    Too humble 'tis for pride to taint,
    Too great to seek deserts.

    Its sacred solace all accept
    Nor ponder on the cause;
    It is of things that ask no rule,
    That stand above the laws.

    Of things upon no judgment built;
    No weighing of the mind—
    The hunger of the human heart
    To treasure still its kind.

    Amidst the loathing and the scorn
    Some hands will faithful be;
    If honors thicken such will yet
    Give love's simplicity.

    Our morning sun, it shines when strength
    Keeps failure from us far;
    And when we sink, and strive no more,
    It glows, our evening star.

  8. To Friendship

    A chosen few, whose friendship pure,
    Throughout all changes would endure.
    Whose souls embrace the mighty plan,
    Of love to God, and love to man.

    - Benjamin Hine
    To Friendship
    by Benjamin Hine

    Were there none to use thy name,
    But such as feel thy sacred flame,
    None but those who friends would be,
    Were we in adversity.
    And whether fortune frowned or smiled,
    Heaped her favours or withheld,
    A friend unshaken would remain,
    To soothe our grief, to ease our pain,
    To help in every time of need,
    And thus evince a friend indeed.

    How long might thou neglected lie,
    Even obsolete become, and die,
    Or from our language be erased,
    Thy import lost, thy name effaced;
    And is it thus, and can it be?
    O, no, forbid it charity.
    Are there not some might justly claim,
    Without abuse, thy hallowed name?
    A chosen few, whose friendship pure,
    Throughout all changes would endure.
    Whose souls embrace the mighty plan,
    Of love to God, and love to man.


    A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

    – Proverbs 17:17
    The Bible, KJV

  9. I.

    And age grows young in friendship's quickening sun.

    - Christopher Pearse Cranch
    VII.
    by Christopher Pearse Cranch

    Those times are gone, that circle thinned away,
    And we who live, now scattered far and wide,
    Each in our separate centres fixed abide,
    Round which new interests now revolve and play
    In separate loves and duties day by day.
    Yet, by the records of old loves allied,
    We clasp each other's hands beneath the tide
    Of time, and cling together as we may.
    Even so beneath the sea the throbbing wires
    That bind the sundered continents in one,
    In space-annihilating pulses thrill
    With swift-winged words and purpose and desires.
    Our earlier visions haunt our memories still,
    And age grows young in friendship's quickening sun.

  10. Friendship

    by Henry David Thoreau

    I think awhile of Love, and while I think,
    Love is to me a world,
    Sole meat and sweetest drink,
    And close connecting link
    Tween heaven and earth.

    I only know it is, not how or why,
    My greatest happiness;
    However hard I try,
    Not if I were to die,
    Can I explain.

    I fain would ask my friend how it can be,
    But when the time arrives,
    Then Love is more lovely
    Than anything to me,
    And so I'm dumb.

    For if the truth were known, Love cannot speak,
    But only thinks and does;
    Though surely out 'twill leak
    Without the help of Greek,
    Or any tongue.

    A man may love the truth and practise it,
    Beauty he may admire,
    And goodness not omit,
    As much as may befit
    To reverence.

    But only when these three together meet,
    As they always incline,
    And make one soul the seat,
    And favorite retreat,
    Of loveliness;

    When under kindred shape, like loves and hates
    And a kindred nature,
    Proclaim us to be mates,
    Exposed to equal fates
    Eternally;

    And each may other help, and service do,
    Drawing Love's bands more tight,
    Service he ne'er shall rue
    While one and one make two,
    And two are one;

    In such case only doth man fully prove
    Fully as man can do,
    What power there is in Love
    His inmost soul to move
    Resistlessly.

    * * * * *

    Two sturdy oaks I mean, which side by side,
    Withstand the winter's storm,
    And spite of wind and tide,
    Grow up the meadow's pride,
    For both are strong

    Above they barely touch, but undermined
    Down to their deepest source,
    Admiring you shall find
    Their roots are intertwined
    Insep'rably.

  11. Pray for Me

    Still for myself I'll work and pray,
    And toil along my blundering way;
    But doubled all my strength will be
    If you, O friend, will pray for me!

    - Amos Russel Wells
    Pray for Me
    by Amos Russel Wells

    On faith's mysterious heights you stand,
    And reach and grasp the Father's hand.
    Oh, with that access hold and free,
    Place a petition there for me!

    I grope in fogs. Your vision, clear
    In faith's serener atmosphere,
    Oh, use victoriously for me,
    And paint the heaven I cannot see!

    Too cold my tongue, too dull my ear,
    Earth's nobler words to speak or hear.
    Oh, while I learn the lower song,
    Sing you for me in heaven's throng!

    Still for myself I'll work and pray,
    And toil along my blundering way;
    But doubled all my strength will be
    If you, O friend, will pray for me!

  12. A Soul I Met

    by Ruby Archer

    I must tell of a soul I met,
    Peaceful and strong and free,
    Pure in its constancy,
    Of a charm that I cannot forget.

    Heart-sick, I wearied of life,—
    All seemed playing a part,
    Nowhere an honest heart,
    All the world a wrangle and strife.

    Where the glorious mountains laid
    Their heads on the breast of the sky
    And slept while the wind sang by,—
    There my hurrying feet where stayed.

    While the glory and peace and rest
    Brooded above my thought,
    Weary and over-wrought,—
    Came the soul, and my life was blest.

  13. The Enchanted Traveller

    We travelled empty-handed
    With hearts all fear above,
    For we ate the bread of friendship,
    We drank the wine of love.

    - Bliss Carman
    The Enchanted Traveller
    by Bliss Carman

    We travelled empty-handed
    With hearts all fear above,
    For we ate the bread of friendship,
    We drank the wine of love.

    Through many a wondrous autumn,
    Through many a magic spring,
    We hailed the scarlet banners,
    We heard the blue-bird sing.

    We looked on life and nature
    With the eager eyes of youth,
    And all we asked or cared for
    Was beauty, joy, and truth.

    We found no other wisdom,
    We learned no other way,
    Than the gladness of the morning,
    The glory of the day.

    So all our earthly treasure
    Shall go with us, my dears,
    Aboard the Shadow Liner,
    Across the sea of years.

  14. A Live Wire

    by Anonymous

    I did not know—so awkward I,
    So fumbling in my speech—
    That I had touched a quivering nerve
    No man might safely reach.

    A burst, a flash, a deadly blow,
    A friendship numb for aye,
    What other end may one expect,
    If one with lightnings play?

  15. Till the End

    by Emily Dickinson

    I should not dare to leave my friend,
    Because — because if he should die
    While I was gone, and I — too late —
    Should reach the heart that wanted me;

    If I should disappoint the eyes
    That hunted, hunted so, to see,
    And could not bear to shut until
    They "noticed" me — they noticed me;

    If I should stab the patient faith
    So sure I'd come — so sure I'd come,
    It listening, listening, went to sleep
    Telling my tardy name, —

    My heart would wish it broke before,
    Since breaking then, since breaking then,
    Were useless as next morning's sun,
    Where midnight frosts had lain!

  16. If anybody's friend be dead

    by Emily Dickinson

    If anybody's friend be dead,
    It 's sharpest of the theme
    The thinking how they walked alive,
    At such and such a time.

    Their costume, of a Sunday,
    Some manner of the hair, —
    A prank nobody knew but them,
    Lost, in the sepulchre.

    How warm they were on such a day:
    You almost feel the date,
    So short way off it seems; and now,
    They 're centuries from that.

    How pleased they were at what you said;
    You try to touch the smile,
    And dip your fingers in the frost:
    When was it, can you tell,

    You asked the company to tea,
    Acquaintance, just a few,
    And chatted close with this grand thing
    That don't remember you?

    Past bows and invitations,
    Past interview, and vow,
    Past what ourselves can estimate, —
    That makes the quick of woe!

  17. Solitude

    Be glad, and your friends are many;
    Be sad, and you lose them all,
    There are none to decline your nectar'd wine,
    But alone you must drink life's gall.

    - Ella Wheeler Wilcox
    Solitude
    by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

    Laugh, and the world laughs with you,
    Weep, and you weep alone;
    For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth,
    But has trouble enough of its own.

    Sing, and the hills will answer,
    Sigh, it is lost on the air;
    The echoes bound to a joyful sound,
    But shirk from voicing care.

    Rejoice and men will seek you;
    Grieve, and they turn and go;
    They want full measure of all your pleasure,
    But they do not need your woe.

    Be glad, and your friends are many;
    Be sad, and you lose them all,
    There are none to decline your nectar'd wine,
    But alone you must drink life's gall.

    Feast, and your halls are crowded;
    Fast, and the world goes by;
    Succeed and give, and it helps you live,
    But no man can help you die.

    There is room in the halls of pleasure
    For a large and lordly train,
    But one by one we must all file on
    Through the narrow aisle of pain.


    Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

    – Galations 6:2
    The Bible, NIV

  18. Friendship

    by Eliza Wolcott

    How dear and bless'd the name
    Of friendship's golden chain;
    She leads the happy mind
    Where virtues are combin'd.

    In peace, content, and love,
    Thus we true friendship prove,
    An interchange of joy,
    Which nothing can destroy.

    A confidence is join'd
    To mingle souls refin'd,
    And angels listen there,
    Such tidings to declare.

  19. Old Friends Together

    by Charles Swain

    I.
    Oh, time is sweet, when roses meet
    With Spring's sweet breath around then;
    And sweet the cost, when hearts are lost,
    If those we love have found them!
    And sweet the Mind, that still can find
    A star in darkest weather!
    But nought can be so sweet to see,
    As old friends met together!

    II.
    Those days of old, when youth was bold,
    And Time stole wings to speed it,
    And youth ne'er knew how fast time flew—
    Or knowing, did not heed it!
    Though gray each brow that meets us now—
    For age brings wintry weather—
    Yet nought can be so sweet to see
    As those old friends together!

    III.
    The few long known, that years have shown,
    With hearts that friendship blesses;
    A hand to cheer—perchance, a tear
    To soothe a friend's distresses!
    That helped and tried—still side by side—
    A friend to face hard weather;
    Oh, thus may we yet joy to see,
    And meet old friends together!

  20. The House by the Side of the Road

    Let me live in a house by the side of the road
    And be a friend to man.

    - Sam Walter Foss
    The House by the Side of the Road
    by Sam Walter Foss

    There are hermit souls that live withdrawn
    In the peace of their self-content;
    There are souls, like stars, that dwell apart,
    In a fellowless firmament;
    There are pioneer souls that blaze their paths
    Where highways never ran;—
    But let me live by the side of the road
    And be a friend to man.

    Let me live in a house by the side of the road,
    Where the race of men go by—
    The men who are good and the men who are bad,
    As good and as bad as I.
    I would not sit in the scorner’s seat,
    Or hurl the cynic’s ban;—
    Let me live in a house by the side of the road
    And be a friend to man.

    I see from my house by the side of the road,
    By the side of the highway of life,
    The men who press with the ardor of hope,
    The men who are faint with the strife.
    But I turn not away from their smiles nor their tears—
    Both parts of an infinite plan;—
    Let me live in my house by the side of the road
    And be a friend to man.

    I know there are brook-gladdened meadows ahead
    And mountains of wearisome height;
    That the road passes on through the long afternoon
    And stretches away to the night.
    But still I rejoice when the travelers rejoice,
    And weep with the strangers that moan,
    Nor live in my house by the side of the road
    Like a man who dwells alone.

    Let me live in my house by the side of the road
    Where the race of men go by—
    They are good, they are bad, they are weak, they are strong,
    Wise, foolish— so am I.
    Then why should I sit in the scorner’s seat
    Or hurl the cynic’s ban?—
    Let me live in my house by the side of the road
    And be a friend to man.

  21. Friendship's Tone And Laugh

    by Richard Lynott O'Malley

    Though the bard wakes the string of old friendship much,
    And sings of the banqueting board,
    Yet how can I help but to give it a touch
    When my fingers are now on that chord.
    When the voice of old years echoes still in my ears,
    And my heart echoes back a response,
    And my carol the tone of new friendship endears
    As it laughs out its music at once.

    Blest blest are the ears that quaff
    Sweet Friendship's Tone and Laugh!
    What a thrilling ring! O who would not sing
    Of Friendship's Tone and Laugh!

    Alas, for the breast that is barren of this,
    A gift which was hallowed above!
    For they say that, of old, 'twas an Angel's kiss,
    And it came in the form of a dove:
    And believe it, sweet friend, I know it still lives,
    For I hear its fond music in thee;
    In thy bosom it lives, and each note that it gives
    Awakens an echo in me.

    Blest, blest are the ears that quaff, etc., etc.

    O sweet the emotion that old friends awake
    When they meet in the real old style;
    When they give to the hand a warm shake for a shake,
    And give a fond smile for a smile;
    And when they are met, and the banquet is set,
    And the cups around are given,
    And the cheek with a hallowed remembrance is wet,
    Oh what shall I call it but Heaven!

    Blest, blest are the ears that quaff, etc., etc.

  22. Meeting of Friends After a Long Absence

    by Eliza Wolcott

    The features of my friend I know,
    Though years have roll'd between,
    For sure, the furrow'd cheek will show,
    Where friendship's smile hath been.

    That voice, though weak, still bears the sound,
    Of cheering notes to me;
    That eye, though dim, to mine is bound,
    For speaking looks agree.

    That brow I know, though mark'd with care,
    Its influence is the same,
    In all its weal or wo, I share,
    For friendship's hallowed name.

    More beautiful my friends appear,
    As sorrow o'er them rolls;
    And I can smile, or drop a tear,
    With such congenial souls.

    Tell not of wealth, with all its gain,
    (Unhallowed sound to me,)
    But tell how truth and grace maintain
    The soul forever free.

  23. The Meeting of the Waters

    by Eliza and Sarah Wolcott

    Flowing streams in all your windings stray,
    And fill the bosom of the swelling deep,
    There welcome to the home of waters stay,
    Where all your murmurs gently sink to sleep.

    Thus friendship, sweet resemblance of your course,
    In numerous channels the blest union fills;
    And as the dew of Hermon gently pours,
    It falls on Zion, fairest of the hills.

  24. Parting of Three Friends

    by Eliza and Sarah Wolcott

    O, when shall we three meet again,
    In friendly converse true;
    O, when shall we three hold the chain
    Of a kind interview.

    Perhaps ere we again shall meet,
    Decrepid age may steal,
    Engraving marks of time most fleet,
    And set his potent seal.

    Perhaps we ne'er this side the grave,
    May press each friendly hand;
    But know the separating wave,
    Shall not our thoughts withstand.

    Still let us hope to meet again,
    And taste true friendship's balm;
    Our joys we then will not refrain,
    For pleasures new will charm.

  25. A Time to Talk

    by Robert Frost

    When a friend calls to me from the road
    And slows his horse to a meaning walk,
    I don’t stand still and look around
    On all the hills I haven’t hoed,
    And shout from where I am, What is it?
    No, not as there is a time to talk.
    I thrust my hoe in the mellow ground,
    Blade-end up and five feet tall,
    And plod: I go up to the stone wall
    For a friendly visit.

  26. The Kindly Neighbor

    by Edgar A. Guest

    I have a kindly neighbor, one who stands
    Beside my gate and chats with me awhile,
    Gives me the glory of his radiant smile
    And comes at times to help with willing hands.
    No station high or rank this man commands,
    He, too, must trudge, as I, the long day's mile;
    And yet, devoid of pomp or gaudy style,
    He has a worth exceeding stocks or lands.

    To him I go when sorrow's at my door,
    On him I lean when burdens come my way,
    Together oft we talk our trials o'er
    And there is warmth in each good-night we say.
    A kindly neighbor! Wars and strife shall end
    When man has made the man next door his friend.

  27. Friendship

    by Ralph Waldo Emerson

    A ruddy drop of manly blood
    The surging sea outweighs;
    The world uncertain comes and goes,
    The lover rooted stays.
    I fancied he was fled,—
    And, after many a year,
    Glowed unexhausted kindliness,
    Like daily sunrise there.
    My careful heart was free again;
    O friend, my bosom said,
    Through thee alone the sky is arched,
    Through thee the rose is red;
    All things through thee take nobler form,
    And look beyond the earth;
    The mill-round of our fate appears
    A sun-path in thy worth.
    Me too thy nobleness had taught
    To master my despair;
    The fountains of my hidden life
    Are through thy friendship fair.

  28. The Memory of the Heart

    by Daniel Webster

    If stores of dry and learned lore we gain,
    We keep them in the memory of the brain;
    Names, things, and facts—whate’er we knowledge call,
    There is the common ledger for them all;
    And images on this cold surface traced
    Make slight impressions, and are soon effaced.

    But we ’ve a page more glowing and more bright,
    On which our friendship and our love to write;
    That these may never from the soul depart,
    We trust them to the memory of the heart.
    There is no dimming—no effacement here;
    Each new pulsation keeps the record clear;
    Warm, golden letters, all the tablet fill,
    Nor lose their lustre till the heart stands still.

  29. Parted Friends

    by James Montgomery

    Friend after friend departs:
    Who hath not lost a friend?
    There is no union here of hearts
    That finds not here an end;
    Were this frail world our only rest,
    Living or dying, none were blest.

    Beyond the flight of time,
    Beyond this vale of death,
    There surely is some blessèd clime
    Where life is not a breath,
    Nor life’s affections transient fire,
    Whose sparks fly upward to expire.

    There is a world above,
    Where parting is unknown;
    A whole eternity of love,
    Formed for the good alone;
    And faith beholds the dying here
    Translated to that happier sphere.

    Thus star by star declines,
    Till all are passed away,
    As morning high and higher shines,
    To pure and perfect day;
    Nor sink those stars in empty night;
    They hide themselves in heaven’s own light.

  30. Our Friendship

    by Ellen P. Allerton

    They say true friendship changeth not,
    But grows and grows;
    Through chance, and time, and treacherous plot,
    Through change of scene and change of lot,
    Still changeless shows.

    If this be true, sure here is seen
    Some great mistake!
    The friend of years no friend hath been,
    Else naught on earth could come between,
    The bond to break.

    Am I, then, false? I meant no lie;
    Yet nevermore
    With friendship on my lip, can I,
    As oft aforetime, seek thine eye,
    Or cross thy door!

    Dost marvel why? 'Tis quickly told.
    Here at thy feet
    I fling away our friendship old,
    Because henceforth our two hearts hold
    A tie more sweet!

    I love thee! therefore can we be
    No longer friends.
    Thou takest what I offer thee—
    Thy whole heart's sweetness givest me.
    So friendship ends.

  31. Written in an Album

    That I may claim
    What she on memory may bestow
    In friendship's name—
    A smile, or tear, as joy or wo
    Shall mark the path where I may go!

    - Hannah Flagg Gould
    Written in an Album
    by Hannah Flagg Gould

    Thou tiny leaf,
    Thou art so small, so very small,
    I must be brief,
    If I would sully thee at all,
    With aught that from my pen may fall!

    Then haste from me;
    Go quick to Caroline, and show
    My wish, that she
    O'er no rude spot of earth, may go,
    Small as thyself, where thorns shall grow;—

    That there may be
    No cloud so broad in all her sky
    'T would shadow thee;
    Nor pain nor sorrow e'er come nigh
    To blanch her cheek, or dim her eye:—

    That I may claim
    What she on memory may bestow
    In friendship's name—
    A smile, or tear, as joy or wo
    Shall mark the path where I may go!


    For the friendship that hope and affection have brought —
    Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving!

    – Anonymous
    Giving Thanks

  32. Violets

    by Ruby Archer

    Violets, I hold you
    Sweet within my hand.
    Whisper what he told you
    In the sunset land.

    Violets, my spirit
    Feels what you intend.
    In my soul I hear it:
    "Think upon thy friend."

  33. Man and Dog and Horse and Tree

    by Annette Wynne

    Man and dog and horse and tree,
    All are valued friends to me;
    Who loves one and leaves the rest
    Hardly chooses for the best;
    I choose all—so let me be
    Friend to man, dog, horse and tree.

  34. The Friendly Tree

    by Annette Wynne

    I've found a place beside a friendly tree,
    Where I'll hide my face when the world hurts me,
    For the tree will never hurt; I shall love it to the end;
    It shall have a dear, dear name:
    "My true and silent friend."

  35. Sun, Dear Sun

    by Annette Wynne

    Sun, dear sun, that brings the day,
    What a friend in work and play,
    What a friend to every one—
    Dear, big, glad, round, shining sun,
    What a good bright world you make—
    Is it for the children's sake?

    They tell me you go shining on
    When our day is past and gone,
    That when you climb the far hill crest,
    And leave us darkness-time and rest
    You shine right on. Then in the west
    Is some small girl as glad as I
    To find you shining in her sky;
    And she is playing in her day—
    While I'm asleep quite far away.

    O, you're a friend to every one—
    Dear big, glad, round, shining sun!

  36. Value of Friends

    by Bernhart Paul Holst

    Give me kind friends, true friends in need,
    Who don no idle, winning wiles,
    And who will be true friends, indeed,
    If storms abound or fortune smiles.

    I care not for lavish praises
    That oft come from the vacant mind,
    Nor the empty, studied phrases
    Which leave the heart and soul behind.

    True friends will more than press my hand,
    And more than cheer in time of bliss,
    And more than empty words extend
    When multitudes grow cold and hiss.

    Trustworthy friends will help and cheer,
    Will make the timid spirit brave,
    Will light the path, though dark and drear,
    Which leads from sorrows to the grave.

    Give me true friends and let me be
    Throughout this life, from day to day,
    As true to them, as they to me—
    What pangs of anguish 'twould allay!

  37. Friends

    by Bernhart Paul Holst

    Should some one speak unkindly of your friend,
    With earnest mien, you must his worth defend;
    Though all the world should at your true friend chide,
    Hold to his hand and stand close by his side—
    For this we know: a true and trusty heart
    Of happy life is an essential part.

    Heaven will in its gentle kindness give
    True friends to those who truly act and live,
    But those that fail trustworthy friends to prize
    At length are severed from these holy ties—
    And finally, o'erwhelmed by doubt and fear,
    Are borne by strangers on their rustic bier.

    Should storms betide and all your fortune rend,
    You still are rich if you possess a friend,
    But if you win vast fortune and renown,
    Or even wear a sceptered, kingly crown,
    And have no friends, no trusty friends in need,
    You still are poor, ah! very poor, indeed!

  38. Abiding Friendship

    by Bernhart Paul Holst

    We meet on the basis of friendship
    And pledge our good wishes again,
    The ties of affection unite us,
    Oh, could it thus ever remain!

    It cannot thus alway continue—
    As the cycles of years pass away
    Our flowers will bloom and soon wither,
    So let us enjoy them today.

    So many glad people before us
    Have lived and have passed from this scene,
    We hold them in sweetest remembrance
    And trust that their rest is serene.

    So many glad people will follow
    When this life we've pleasantly spent;
    We hail and bespeak them the blessings
    Which nature in kindness us lent.

    Since joy cannot ever continue
    And tried friends are better than new,
    No matter how far we may scatter
    We'll cherish old friends, good and true.

    Should distance greatly divide us,
    Our hearts will be true as today,
    And all will be joyed at the fortune,
    When good comes to one far away.

    And should we again come together
    Before all of life we will spend,
    We'll link with the happy beginning
    A joyous and beautiful end.

  39. Marigold

    by Hilda Conkling

    Marigold, marigold,
    Where are you going?
    Have you a plan? Can you not tell me?
    I should like to know!
    There are lots of places to wander,
    There is a brook needing a visitor,
    A robin needing a friend.
    You must not be lonely:
    You belong to nature as I do!
    You have a frank little way of staring . . .
    I am curious about you!
    The blue sky hangs over you and me . . .
    The sun's rays fall on us both . . .
    Why not be happy
    On this wonderful earth?
    Marigold, answer!
    I tell you all my thoughts
    But you have not said a word!
    (It was then she said softly
    "I have many friends,
    But you are my best!"

  40. What Would Life Be?

    by Annie Armstrong

    If some sad moment I should wake to know
    That all the friends I love and hold most dear,
    If I were dead, would shed no bitter tear,
    All the dear friends I love and cherish so,
    What would life be?

    If I should feel that in all God's great earth
    No heart responsive throbbed unto my own;
    That I was left in all the world alone,
    With none to feel my woes or share my mirth,
    What would life be?

    I could not wish to live another day
    If this I knew, but I should pray to die;
    Such a bleak desert, cold and bare and dry.
    With such a leaden sky so dull and gray
    This earth would be.

    O, those bright cheering gifts from Heaven above,
    How little do we prize them till they flee!
    For without friendship, hope, or charity,
    Without the boons of sympathy and love,
    What would life be?

  41. The Arrow and the Song

    by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

    I shot an arrow into the air,
    It fell to earth, I knew not where;
    For, so swiftly it flew, the sight
    Could not follow it in its flight.

    I breathed a song into the air,
    It fell to earth, I knew not where;
    For who has sight so keen and strong,
    That it can follow the flight of song?

    Long, long afterward, in an oak
    I found the arrow, still unbroke;
    And the song, from beginning to end,
    I found again in the heart of a friend.

  42. Encouragement

    by Douglas Malloch

    I hold him dearest who aspires
    To kindle in my heart the fires
    Of best desires.

    I hold the man of all most dear
    Who, when I stumble, draweth near
    With word of cheer.

    I hold that man of best intents
    Who giveth me not paltry pence,
    But confidence.

    For there are men who quick caress
    Win give to laurel-crowned success—
    To nothing less.

    But, oh, how dearer far are they
    Who help me on the upward way
    When skies are gray.

    If so it be that I attain
    The mountain peak, and leave the plain
    And paths of pain,

    My prayers shall first be upward sent
    For those dear friends of mine who lent
    Encouragement.

  43. To One Who Pledged Her Friendship

    by Freeman E. Miller

    Within this false world we may count ourselves blest,
    If we have but one friend who is faithful and true;
    And so in your friendship contented I'll rest,
    And believe I have found that one blessing in you.

  44. Love and Friendship

    by Emily Brontë

    Love is like the wild rose-briar,
    Friendship like the holly-tree—
    The holly is dark when the rose-briar blooms
    But which will bloom most constantly?

    The wild rose-briar is sweet in spring,
    Its summer blossoms scent the air;
    Yet wait till winter comes again
    And who will call the wild-briar fair?

    Then scorn the silly rose-wreath now
    And deck thee with the holly’s sheen,
    That when December blights thy brow
    He still may leave thy garland green.

  45. The Old Familiar Faces

    by Charles Lamb

    I have had playmates, I have had companions,
    In my days of childhood, in my joyful school-days,
    All, all are gone, the old familiar faces.

    I have been laughing, I have been carousing,
    Drinking late, sitting late, with my bosom cronies,
    All, all are gone, the old familiar faces.

    I loved a love once, fairest among women;
    Closed are her doors on me, I must not see her—
    All, all are gone, the old familiar faces.

    I have a friend, a kinder friend has no man;
    Like an ingrate, I left my friend abruptly;
    Left him, to muse on the old familiar faces.

    Ghost-like, I paced round the haunts of my childhood.
    Earth seemed a desert I was bound to traverse,
    Seeking to find the old familiar faces.

    Friend of my bosom, thou more than a brother,
    Why wert not thou born in my father's dwelling?
    So might we talk of the old familiar faces—

    How some they have died, and some they have left me,
    And some are taken from me; all are departed;
    All, all are gone, the old familiar faces.

  46. True Friends

    by Eugene J. Hall

    Some souls there are that never change,
    Some friendships that endure;
    That neither time nor years estrange,
    Some hearts divine and pure—
    And as we meet them here and there
    About the world, how dear they are!

    And were it not for friends like these,
    To bless our cheerless fate,
    The life we live on earth below
    Were more than desolate,
    And this dark, lonely world of ours
    Were like a garden void of flowers.

  47. Upon the Sand

    by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

    All love that has not friendship for its base,
    Is like a mansion built upon the sand.
    Though brave its walls as any in the land,
    And its tall turrets lift their heads in grace;
    Though skilful and accomplished artists trace
    Most beautiful designs on every hand,
    And gleaming statues in dim niches stand,
    And fountains play in some flow'r—hidden place:

    Yet, when from the frowning east a sudden gust
    Of adverse fate is blown, or sad rains fall
    Day in, day out, against its yielding wall,
    Lo! the fair structure crumbles to the dust.
    Love, to endure life's sorrow and earth's woe,
    Needs friendship's solid masonwork below.

  48. Friendship

    by Edith Franklin Wyatt

    Nor mine are purple muscadine,
    Green wine and precious salve.
    I bring a token more divine
    And give you what I have.
    My roof, my road, my li fe's abode,
    The winds that scent my day,
    My fire-light's shade, my fig-tree's load
    Are yours upon your way.
    But ask no foregone beauty,
    Nor money, musk nor wine:
    Nor call the name of duty.
    Of stuff far more divine,
    The gladness in whose name I'll give
    You anything that's mine.

  49. Faith

    by Frances Anne Kemble

    Better trust all, and be deceived,
    And weep that trust, and that deceiving;
    Than doubt one heart, that, if believed,
    Had blessed one's life with true believing.

    Oh, in this mocking world, too fast
    The doubting fiend o'ertakes our youth!
    Better be cheated to the last,
    Than lose the blessèd hope of truth.

  50. Friendship

    by Samuel Johnson

    Friendship! peculiar boon of Heaven,
    The noble mind's delight and pride;
    To men and angels only given,
    To all the lower world denied.

    While love, unknown among the bless'd,
    Parent of thousand wild desires,
    The savage and the human breast
    Torments alike with raging fires:

    With bright, but oft destructive gleam
    Alike o'er all his lightnings fly;
    Thy lambent glories only beam
    Around the favourites of the sky.

    Thy gentle flows of guiltless joys,
    On fools and villains ne'er descend;
    In vain for thee the tyrant sighs,
    And hugs a flatterer for a friend.

    Directness of the brave and just,
    Oh guide us through life's darksome way;
    And let the tortures of mistrust
    On selfish bosoms only prey.

    Nor shall thine ardours cease to glow,
    When souls to peaceful climes remove;
    What raised our virtue here below,
    Shall aid our happiness above.

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