Friendship by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik

15. September 2004, 22:09 Uhrdinah maria mulock craikrinabeana

I love this poem and I’ve been meaning to post it for a while. I just found it on my computer, so here it is…

Friendship
By Dinah Maria Mulock Craik

Oh, the comfort—the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person,
Having neither to weigh thoughts,
Nor measure words—just as they are—
Chaff and grain together—
Certain that a faithful hand will
Take and sift them—
Keep what is worth keeping—

And with the breath of kindness
Blow the rest away.

5 comments:

  1. Philip, 4. June 2009, 1:15

    This is an amazing poem that has meant a lot to me, thanks for posting it!

     
  2. Marian Harris, 19. August 2009, 18:09

    This outstanding poem was given to me 25 years ago by a very, very special friend. It has never left me and has only given me peace when the world would otherwise be too tough.

     
  3. rinabeana, 26. September 2009, 11:09

    This is one of my favorite poems. I love its utter simplicity, and very vivid image of grain in the hand.

     
  4. Suzanne, 23. July 2010, 3:28

    I thought this poem was by James Fenton!?

     
  5. rinabeana, 23. July 2010, 4:18

    I first read the poem in an older edition of Best Loved Poems of the American People, and it was attributed to Craik. A quick online search just now returned attributions to both Craik and George Eliot, though not with a verifiable source. Fenton’s name didn’t come up.

     

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