by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872 - 1906)
Language: English
A crust of bread and a corner to sleep in,
A minute to smile and an hour to weep in,
A pint of joy to a peck of trouble,
And never a laugh but the moans come double;
And that is life!
A crust and a corner that love makes precious,
With a smile to warm and the tears to refresh us;
And joy seems sweeter when cares come after,
And a moan is the finest of foils for laughter;
And that is life!
Composition:
- Set to music by Gary Bachlund (b. 1947), "Life", 2009 [ low voice or medium voice and piano ]
Text Authorship:
- by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872 - 1906), "Life", appears in Lyrics of Lowly Life, first published 1896
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Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-07-27
Line count: 10
Word count: 84