The Beggar And The Angel
An angel burdened with self-pity
Came out of heaven to a modern city.
He saw a beggar on the street,
Where the tides of traffic meet.
A pair of brass-bound hickory pegs
Brought him his pence instead of legs.
A murky dog by him did lie,
Poodle, in part, his ancestry.
The angel stood and thought upon
This poodle-haunted beggar man.
'My life is grown a bore,' said he,
'One long round of sciamachy;
I think I'll do a little good,
By way of change from angelhood.'
He drew near to the beggar grim,
And gravely thus accosted him:
'How would you like, my friend, to fly
All day through the translucent sky;
To knock at the door of the red leaven,
And even to enter the orthodox heaven?
If you would care to know this joy,
I will surrender my employ,
And take your ills, collect your pelf,
An humble beggar like yourself.
For ages you these joys may know,
While I shall suffer here below;
And in the end we both may gain
Access of pleasure from my pain.'
The stationary vagrant said,
'I do not mind, so go ahead.'
The angel told the heavenly charm,
He felt a wing on either arm;
'Good-day,' he said, 'this floating's queer
If I should want to change next year--?'
'Pull out that feather!' the angel said,
'The one half black and the other half red.'
The cripple cried, 'Before you're through
You may get fagged, and if you do,--'
The angel superciliously--
'My transformed friend, don't think of me.
I shall be happy day and night,
In doing what I think is right.'
'So so,' the feathered beggar said,
'Good-bye, I am just overhead.'
* * * * *
The angel when he grasped the dish,
Began to criticize his wish.
The seat was hard as granite rocks,
His real legs were in the box.
His knees were cramped, his shins were sore,
The lying pegs stuck out before.
In vain he clinked the dish and whined.
The passers-by seemed deaf and blind.
As pious looking as Saint Denis,
An urchin stole his catch-penny.
And even the beggar's drab-fleeced poodle
Began to know him for a noodle.
'It has an uncelestial scent,
The clothing of this mendicant;'
He cried, 'That trickling down my spine
Is anything but hyaline.
This day is like a thousand years:
I'd give an age of sighs and tears
To see with his confectioned grin
One cherub sitting on his chin.
That cripple was by far too sly--
I wish he'd tumble from the sky,
That things might be as they were before;
I really cannot stand much more!'
* * * * *
The beggar in the angel's guise,
Rose far above the smoky skies.
But being a beggar, never saw
The charm of the compelling law
That turned the swinging universe:
'Twas gloomy as an empty purse.
Often with heaven in his head,
He blundered on a planet dead.
And when with an immortal fuss,
He singed his wings at Sirius.
He plucked the feather with his teeth,
The charm was potent and beneath,
He saw the turmoil of the way
Grown wilder at the close of day,
With the sad poodle, can in hand,
The angel still at the old stand.
'My friend,' said the angel, hemming and humming,
'Truly I thought you were never coming.'
'That's an unhandsome thing to say,
Seeing I've only been gone a day.
But there's nothing in all your brazen sky
To match the cock of that poodle's eye.
Take your dish and give me my wings,
'Tis but a fair exchange of things.'
* * * * *
The beggar felt his garment's rot,
The horn ridge of each callous spot;
He clinked his can and was content;
His poverty was permanent.
poem by Duncan Campbell Scott
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Related quotes
The Humbling / Parable of 'Kentucky Lucky
There once was a man,
Come from Kentucky.
He was the luckiest
Of the lucky.
He was better,
He was best.
He claimed to be higher
Than all the rest.
His favorite pastime
Was revelling in everything
He thought he knew.
Little did he relize,
He was about to recieve his due.
Nothing could happen to him!
He was The Elite.
But as he walked along,
He met a beggar in the street.
Said the beggar,
'A shekel, for a worthy cause? '
But Pride strutted by,
Without a pause.
Pride was a long way off,
When suddenly,
He ground to a stop.
For there stood the beggar,
Draped with downy wings,
And clad in robes of pure white!
Said foolish Pride,
'You are an angel,
And yet you asked of me,
A shekel? '
Then the angel replied,
'For a shekel, I did ask.
Just one little shekel,
'Twas all.'
'But you think it too humble a task.'
'Forget it!
A shekel, I do not need.'
'My Lord and God provides me all.'
As the angel turned to take leave,
Pride soon began to greive.
'Wait! ' cried Pride,
'Don't leave! '
'Come! '
'Eat! '
'Look! '
'I give you my all! '
Said the angel,
'Had you known
Who I really was
When I was poor,
You would not have turned me
From your door.'
'But - But, I! '...
Tried to reason Pride.
'Excuses', said the angel,
'Will not do you well,
Nor shall it justify your sin.'
'Now! , Look not upon earthly things,
But store up for yourslf teasures in Heaven.
'You can do this by serving God,
And not just looking out for yourself,
But by concerning yourself in the interests
of others.'
'But, Pride,
One thing you should remember above all' -
'Is that pride comes, before a fall.'
poem by Macy Dvirnak
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You're my Angel
You're an Angel that nobody can see,
Still an Angel is what you are to me
An angel from heaven is what you are
In my sky you're definitely a heavenly star
You're an angel with beauty & grace
You're so kind & sweet,
you have an angel’s face
You have a pair of angel’s wings
Happiness and joy are just some things
That an angel can give
In my heart & mind is where you're living
You have hair as soft as the white clouds
A guardian angel is what I have gotten.
Your eyes are like sapphires that shine bright.
When everything is dark, you give me light.
You're an angel that gives me a reason to live,
You're an angel that teaches me to give.
You're an angel that teaches me the right things to say.
You're my angel & Ill always care.
You're my angel & you know Ill always be there.
poem by Dr Nihar Ranjan Ray
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U R My Angle
You're an Angel that nobody can see,
Still an Angel is what you are to me
An angel from heaven is what you are
In my sky you're definably a heavenly star
You're an angel with beauty & grace
You're kind & sweet, you have an angel face
You have very graceful angel wings
Happiness and joy are just some things
that an angel can give
In my heart & mind is where you're living
You have hair as soft as the white clouds
A guardian angel is what Ive gotten.
Your eyes are like sapphires that shine bright.
When everything is dark, you give me light.
You're an angel that gives me a reason to live,
You're an angel that teaches me to give.
You're an angel that teaches me the right things to say.
You're my angel & Ill always care.
You're my angel & you know Ill always be there.
poem by Ankur Garg
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You're an Angel
You're an angel that nobody can see,
Still, an angel is what you are to me.
An angel from heaven is what you are,
In my sky you're definitely a heavenly star.
You're an angel with beauty and grace,
You're kind and sweet, you've an angel face.
You have very graceful angel wings.
Happiness, joy, and love are just some things,
That an angel can give, and to me you've given.
In my heart and on my mind, is where you're livin'.
You have hair that is as soft as cotton.
A guardian angel is what I've gotten.
Your eyes are like sapphires that shine bright,
When everything is dark, you give me light.
You're an angel that gives me a reason to live,
You're the angel that teaches me to give.
You're the angel that makes me live another day,
You're the angel that teaches me the right things to say.
You're my angel and you'll always care,
You're my angel and you know I'll always be there.
(April the 4th.)
poem by Symone Raven
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I am an Angel
i am an angel,
with no wings;
i am an angel,
that has a sad song, but cannot sing.
i am an angel,
that in silience, i cry;
i am an angel,
that tells lies.
i am an angel,
with no halo;
i am an angel,
that lays low.
i am an angel,
that has an extra hand;
i am an angel,
that tries to care for everyone that i can.
i am an angel,
that steals;
i am an angel,
that has a broken heart that never healed.
i am an angel,
with some love to give;
i am an angel,
that sometimes, doesn't want to live.
i am an angel,
that wants to be;
i am an angel,
that wants to leave.
i am an angel,
that has a secret past;
i will always be an angel,
even though i sometimes move fast.
poem by Ariel Sampson
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Beggar To Beggar Cried
'TIME to put off the world and go somewhere
And find my health again in the sea air,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'And make my soul before my pate is bare.-
'And get a comfortable wife and house
To rid me of the devil in my shoes,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'And the worse devil that is between my thighs.'
And though I'd marry with a comely lass,
She need not be too comely -- let it pass,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'But there's a devil in a looking-glass.'
'Nor should she be too rich, because the rich
Are driven by wealth as beggars by the itch,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'And cannot have a humorous happy speech.'
'And there I'll grow respected at my ease,
And hear amid the garden's nightly peace.'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'The wind-blown clamour of the barnacle-geese.'
poem by William Butler Yeats
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I Wish I Was A Heavenly Angel
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would watch and protect mankind
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must play in my own kind
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would pray for those in sorrow
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must suffer the torment of borrow
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would worship my god day and night
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must fight for my own right
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would always cling to my sword
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must fight the pain of my fault
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would never no tiredness
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must till the land to grow in abundance
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would weep when man sin
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must pray for my own sin so dire
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would shore endlessly in space
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must check as I walk in pace
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For I would wonder around this world free
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must stand still as a tree
I wish I was a heavenly angel
For my heart shall always be in joy
But I am no heavenly angel
Hence must behave just like a boy
poem by Samuel Donkor
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Angel........
Angel of love
Angel of hate
Angel of pain
Angel of hope
Angel of God
Angel of the death
Angel of happeness
Angel of sadness
Angel of madness
Angel gives me everthing in life as my friend
poem by Anees Akbar
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Angel Come Home
Oo ooo ooo ooo ooo
Now the puzzles laid out on my table
The pieces dont fit
I move from chair to chair
But that empty ones there where she used to sit
Im sitting here going out of my mind
cause shes gone away
She couldnt wait, now i
Im afraid its too late
Im waitin till my angel comes home
Its been hell bein here alone
Ill be in heaven when my angel comes home
Angel, angel come home
If you see her tell my angel come home
Oo oo oo angel come home
If you see her tell my angel to come home
Does she remember
That I cant forget
Does she know I regret
I never told her how i
I wanted to hold her
I just let her go
Lonely nights thinkin
Its starting to sink in
We had a way to go
Well grow closer together
By being apart
When my angel comes home
Its been hell bein here alone
God tell me, why has she flown
So far away
I pray she wont stay another day
Ill be in heaven when my angel comes home
Please come home
Angel, come home
If you see her tell my angel come home
Hoo ooo angel, come home
If you see her tell my angel to come home
Hey hey angel, come home
If you see her tell my angel to come home
Ho oo angel come home
If you see her tell my angel to come home
Hey angel come home
If you see her tell my angel to come home
If you see that girl my angel come home
Hey hey angel come home
song performed by by Beach Boys
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Spaewife
OH, I wad like to ken—to the beggar-wife says I—
Why chops are guid to brander and nane sae guid to fry.
An’ siller, that ’s sae braw to keep, is brawer still to gi’e.
It ’s gey an’ easy spierin’, says the beggar-wife to me.
Oh, I wad like to ken—to the beggar-wife says I—
Hoo a’things come to be whaur we find them when we try,
The lasses in their claes an’ the fishes in the sea.
It ’s gey an’ easy spierin’, says the beggar-wife to me.
Oh, I wad like to ken—to the beggar-wife says I—
Why lads are a’ to sell an’lasses a’ to buy;
An’ naebody for dacency but barely twa or three.
It ’s gey an’ easy spierin’, says the beggar-wife to me.
Oh, I wad like to ken—to the beggar-wife says I—
Gin death’s as shure to men as killin’ is to kye,
Why God has filled the yearth sae fu’ o’ tasty things to pree.
It ’s gey an’ easy spierin’, says the beggar-wife to me.
Oh, I wad like to ken—to the beggar-wife says I—
The reason o’ the cause an’ the wherefore o’ the why,
Wi’ mony anither riddle brings the tear into my e’e.
It ’s gey an’ easy spierin’, says the beggar-wife to me.
poem by Robert Louis Stevenson
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My Angel
My angel is the one who looks over me
My angel is the who cares for me
My angel is the one who loves me
My angel has beautiful brown eyes
My angel has beautiful black hair
My angel will be there when I get hurt
My angel will be the one that is always on my mind
He is the angel that keeps me breathing
He is the angel of my dreams
He is the angel that keeps me alive
My angel will cheer me up when I’m sad
My angel will love me for me
He is my angel of my life
poem by Jessica Bousfield
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Angel
There is an
Angel
Sent down from heaven
To save me from drowning
It's was miracle
I thought I was died, but
I wasn't thanks to an
Angel
I feel so live and happy
That was the worst thing ever happen to me
You are greatest friend ever and my
Angel
Who is always there and
Give me hug when I'm sad and hurt
No matter what happen
You are there right way
You always want me to smile and be happy
You protected me from getting hurt and
You give me great advices
I'm so thankful to have you as a friend
I have an
Angel
Looking over me
Thank you God
I know I'm not alone
I have people who care about me and
Are there to support and help me get up
I have an
Angel
I hope the
Angel
Help me by forgetting the past and
People who hurt me
Also guide me through the difficult times too
There is an
Angel
That I believe in and will always
Thank them for what they done
I wouldn't be here today
If they didn't save me, but
They did save me
There is an
Angel
Watching out for all of us, and
Protect us all too
Angel
poem by Christina Phan
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On Angel Wings
On Angel Wings You Do Fly
On Angel Wings Into The Sky
On Angel Wings I Do Cry
Because Thise Angel Wings Took You Away
On Angel Wings The Angels Sing
Is There No Such Lovely Thing
On Angel Wings You Fly Away
I Will See Them Angel Wings Again Some Day
When I Am Old And My Time Has Come
On Angel Wings I Will Fly
Tell I See You Once Again
Smiling On Angel Wing
poem by Merceds Lilly
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Angel
Artist Judas Priest
Song Angel
Albmun Angel Of Retribution
Lyrics By Rob Halford
Angel,
Put sad wings around me now
Protect me from this world of sin
So that we can rise again
Oh angel,
We can find our way somehow
Escaping from the world we're in
To a place where we began
And I know we'll find
A better place and piece of mind
Just tell me that it's all you want
For you and me
Angel won't you set me free
Angel,
Remember how we chased the sun
Then reaching for the stars at night
As our lives had just begun
When I close my eyes
I hear your velvet wings and cry
I'm waiting here with open arms
Oh can't you see
Angel shine your light on me
Angel we'll meet once more I'll pray
When all my sins are washed away
Hold me inside your wings and stay
Angel take me far away
Put your sad wings around me now
Angel take me far away
Put sad wings around me now
So that we can rise again
Put sad wings around me now
Angel take me far away
Put sad wings around me now
So that we can rise again
song performed by by Judas Priest
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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You r my Angel
You r my Angel
You r my angel the one who looks over me
You r my angel the one who cares for me
You r my angel the one who loves me
You r my angel the one who has beautiful brown eyes
You r my angel the one who has beautiful dark brown hair
You r my angel u will be there when I gets hurt
You r my angel u will be the one that is always on my mind
You r the angel that keeps me breathing
You r the angel of my dreams
You r the angel that keeps me alive
You r my angel that will cheer me up when i m sad
You r my angel that will love me lyk a sweet bess
You r my angel that will support me in my bad times
You r You r my loving Angel
Thanks for being my Angel
poem by Arjun singh Chhabra
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Running To Paradise
As I came over Windy Gap
They threw a halfpenny into my cap.
For I am running to paradise;
And all that I need do is to wish
And somebody puts his hand in the dish
To throw me a bit of salted fish:
And there the king is but as the beggar.
My brother Mourteen is worn out
With skelping his big brawling lout,
And I am running to paradise;
A poor life, do what he can,
And though he keep a dog and a gun,
A serving-maid and a serving-man:
And there the king is but as the beggar.
Poor men have grown to be rich men,
And rich men grown to be poor again,
And I am running to paradise;
And many a darling wit's grown dull
That tossed a bare heel when at school,
Now it has filled a old sock full:
And there the king is but as the beggar.
The wind is old and still at play
While I must hurty upon my way.
For I am running to paradise;
Yet never have I lit on a friend
To take my fancy like the wind
That nobody can buy or bind:
And there the king is but as the beggar.
poem by William Butler Yeats
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Your My Angel
Your My Angel Sent From Heaven Above..
Your My Every Breath That I Take..
Your My Every Reason For Living..
Your My Angel.. Your My Angel Baby
When God Brought You To Me... I Knew
My Life Would Feel Complete...
You Were Made For Me And I For You..
Your My Angel... Your My Angel Baby
Heaven Above Sent You - My Angel...
My Every Motovation... My Every Strenght..
Angel Baby... Your My Angel Baby
Gods Gift From The Heavens Above.
Your My Angel.. Your My Angel Baby
Your My... Your My Angel Baby...
Loving You Is A Dream Come True...
Holding You Tight... Just Feels Right
Your My... Your My... Your My Angel... Baby
Your My.. Your My Angel.. Baby
Loving You Just Feels So Right...
Your My... Your My
Angel Baby...
poem by Laura Eggebrecht
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The Beggar-Man
Abject, stooping, old, and wan,
See yon wretched beggar-man;
Once a father's hopeful heir,
Once a mother's tender care.
When too young to understand
He but scorched his little hand,
By the candle's flaming light
Attracted, dancing, spiral, bright,
Clasping fond her darling round,
A thousand kisses healed the wound.
Now abject, stooping, old, and wan,
No mother tends the beggar-man.
Then nought too good for him to wear,
With cherub face and flaxen hair,
In fancy's choicest gauds arrayed,
Cap of lace with rose to aid,
Milk-white hat and feather blue,
Shoes of red, and coral too
With silver bells to please his ear,
And charm the frequent ready tear.
Now abject, stooping, old, and wan,
Neglected is the beggar-man.
See the boy advance in age,
And learning spreads her useful page;
In vain! for giddy pleasure calls,
And shows the marbles, tops, and balls.
What's learning to the charms of play?
The indulgent tutor must give way.
A heedless wilful dunce, and wild,
The parents' fondness spoiled the child;
The youth in vagrant courses ran;
Now abject, stooping, old, and wan,
Their fondling is the beggar-man.
poem by Charles Lamb
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Once An Angel
Once an angel
Always an angel
Youre as close to heaven
As Ill ever be
Its been six years now
Since my ring slipped on your finger
And those years have made
A better man out of me.
Once an angel
Always an angel
Youre as close to heaven
As Ill ever be.
Thereve been times when
Ive treated you so badly
Ive done things I know
Youll never understand.
But you take me back
Turn your eyes towards the window
Where you hide the tears
You dont want me to see.
Once an angel
Always an angel
Youre as close to heaven
As Ill ever be.
Once an angel
Always an angel
Youre as close to heaven
As Ill ever be.
Youre as close to heaven
As Ill ever be.
song performed by by Neil Young
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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On Angel Wings
On angel wings you do fly
On angel wings into the sky
On angel wings i do cry
Because those angel wings took you away
On angel wings the heralds sing
Is there no such lovely thing?
On angel wings you fly away.
I will see these angel wings again someday
When i am old and my time has come
On angel wings I will fly
Until I'm holding you once again
Smiling on angel wings.
poem by Troy Nichols
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