The Salutation of the Dawn

Listen to the exhortation of the dawn!
Look to this day! For it is life,
    The very life of life.
In its brief course lie all the varieties
And realities of your existence.
    The bliss of growth,
    The glory of action,
    The splendor of beauty,
For yesterday is but a dream,
And tomorrow is only a vision;
    But today well lived
Makes every yesterday a dream of
    happiness,
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore, to this day!
Such is the salutation of the dawn.

       ~ from the Sanskrit

Look to the Dawn

Look to the dawn, not the sunset,
For there's much to be done today;
Arise while the sun's in the eastern sky,
Wait not till the day ebbs away.
For many a soul is steering his ship
Toward the shoals on life's perilous sea,
And we must endeavor to veer his course
While there's still time for him to heed.

Look to the dawn, not the sunset,
For there's much to be said today.
We have been chosen to witness for Christ,
So turn not from others away.
For many a soul is tempest-tossed,
Seeking words of hope and of cheer;
O, list to the call of the one in distress,
Speak to him while there's yet time to hear!

Look to the dawn, not the sunset;
While not a moment away;
Offer your hand to somebody in need
As he struggles along life's way.
For now is the day of salvation,
The day to tell others of Christ,
So look to the dawn, ever praying
That many might come to The Light.

                ~ Loise Pinkerton Fritz