Parental Bereavement

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand  of God,  that He may exalt you in due time; casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you." 1 Peter, v. 6, 7.

I've lost my loved, my cherished little one,
Who smiling, prattling, clasped  her  Father's knee.
Alas!  Her  transient hour of life is run,
And her sweet tone and smile are nought to me.
The  grave hath claimed her. Oft I seem to hear
Her  blessed voice charming the vacant air.
I listen; but my own fond fancy's ear
Frames the sweet sound. My loved one is not there.
Onward, to where yon green tree waves its shade,
I look, when summer's sultry sun is high;
There, in her days of life and health, she played;
In  vain I thither turn my weeping eye.
God in his mercy took her; and 'tis mine
To  feel his ways  are  right, nor let my heart repine.

— American Cottage Life (1850) XXXV.