[*NAWSA GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE Crowell, Grace N.*] GRACE NOLL CROWELL Seven Nineteen Lowell Street DALLAS, TEXAS Nov. 2, 1943, Dear Alice Stone Blackwell, The lovely book just arrived and I am hastening to write you my grateful thanks. It will give me much pleasure to go over it carefully and discover the new beauties of both languages. You must be a very smart woman to have done this enormous work. I am sure you found it interesting and beautiful work. It was good of you to send me the book. I do appreciate it, and I am writing this letter with the typewriter so that it will not strain your eyes. I am so sorry you are suffering with your eyes, but I am sure your spirit is a shining thing and that you have a good time through your days, even with this handicap. May you be blest beyond anything that you can ask or think, I pray. Again, my sincere thanks. I shall tell Mr. Holt of your kindness to me. Most cordially yours, [*Grace Noll Crowell.*] A Meditation on the Lord’s Prayer A Meditation on the Lord’s Prayer by Grace Noll Crowell Designed & Illuminated by Karen J. Zak Copyright 1943 David C. Cook Publishing Co. Printed in U.S.A. “Our Father” How privileged, how blessed we are To call thee Father, gracious Lord, We say it over in our hearts, We plumb the meaning of the word, And all the tenderness and love That life can give is centered there: “Our Father,” humbly we would come Breathing thy name in earnest prayer. “WHICH ART IN HEAVEN" Thou art in heaven, but we know That thou art here--so close that we Can touch thy garments with our hands, Yet heaven's vast immensity Is filled with thy white radiant light; Is waiting for us. Lord, prepare Our holden eyes to ably meet The glory that awaits us there. “HALLOWED BE THY NAME" God, we would hold thy name apart From other names. No name compares With thine: "Jehovah", "Master", "Lord": A name enshrined within our prayers; A holy name that we would keep As sacred, yet a name so dear And precious that thy humblest child Can whisper it, and thou wilt hear. “THY KINGDOM COME" Send the clean winds of heaven, Lord, Into our hearts this very hour; Fill them with understanding love; Fill them with thy own righteous power. We in thy image made, O Lord, Long have been deaf and blind and dumb. Forgive us--send thy peace and light: Out of this night may thy kingdom come. “THY WILL BE DONE" "Thy will be done upon the earth As it is done in heaven", thus Thy Son has taught us how to pray. Thy will, dear Lord, be done in us; Thy will, not ours. God, help us see That what thou wilt is ever best; That only through thy guiding power Can any seeking child be blest. "GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD" Father, thy loving hand supplied Fresh manna through the olden days. Supply our daily loaf, and help Us to accept with fitting praise This staff of life by which we live. We ask not to be richly fed, But, Lord, we would evaluate The miracle of daily bread. "FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS AS WE FORGIVE OUR DEBTORS" "As we forgive"--we dare not pray This searching prayer unless we kneel Close at thy feet to learn of thee. We crave thy skill, dear Lord, to feel The pulse-beat of the hearts of men Beneath a tender seeking hand; To learn the motives that impel Their actions, and thus understand. “AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION" "Thou knowest, Lord, our feeble frame," That we are "dust"--so make a way For our escape from every ill. Let no temptation come, we pray, To bring us downfall or defeat. We would be strong and brave to stand Against all evil. Keep us, Lord, And guide us with thy loving hand. "DELIVER US FROM EVIL" When Evil stalks across the land, Help us to shun it as we should; Help us to keep our minds so stayed Upon the beautiful, the good, That naught shall keep us from Thy presence, and thy sure reward. We crave thy strong protecting might. Deliver us from evil, Lord. “For thine is the power and the glory“ In adoration we would kneel Before the strange, amazing light: The glory that is thine, O God, That bursts upon our inner sight. And thine the Kingdom is — the Power— We lift our hands and hearts to thee: Our Master, Savior, and our God, Our hope of all eternity. Forever, Forever with thee, Blessed One! Companioned through our lives, and then, Safe by thy side forevermore, Thus may it be. Amen. Amen. "Amen" Friendship is that rare and precious privilege of sharing with another perfect confidence and unswerving loyalty. What happier inspiration than this for a sincere Christmas Greeting to you - a friend. To Alice Stone Blackwell from her friends Florence H. and Joshua F. Crowell Published solely for Washington Cathedral Printed in U.S.A. "They That Wait Upon the Lord" O weary one, lay hold on God and claim This glorious promise, prove its depth and length, And let it warm your being like a flame: Who waits on God, he shall renew his strength. Your weariness will pass forever more; You shall forget your sorrow and your tears, You shall be young again -- God will restore The years to you, the seeming wasted years. You shall mount-up as eagles, you shall fly On strong swift pinions through the dazzling noon, Or cleave the night on wings to reach the sky, One with the racing wind, the stars, the moon. And you shall run and not be weary, Heart, The golden hills will fall beneath your feet, The journey's ending will be as the start, So fresh you will be, and the way so sweet. But more than lifting wings, or strength to run, All be the joy, after the old restraint: To walk unburdened, free beneath the sun, The long bright miles before you, and not faint. - Grace Noll Crowell God in the Midst "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty." I read the words, they shine like silver stars Across the darkness of a midnight desert, And suddenly I know there are no bars Set in our lives to keep us from the highest, No hindrances to stay our upward climb, And why should I falter with that power in me? Why should I fail through any darkened time? "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty." I lift my head, new light within my eyes. There is an unseen force that will impel me Forever on my journey toward the skies. Continue, God, to vitalize me quite With the energizing power of Thy might. - Grace Noll Crowell Splendor Ahead It is there ... it is there: The splendor ever before us, Though the valley be deep And the way be long and far. God will not fail To send his morning sunrise, He will not fail To light his evening star, And though tomorrow may seem Too dark for facing God will be in tomorrow -- He will be there, A light ahead, a radiance and a glory Moving before us through the golden air. - Grace Noll Crowell Vision If we could see beyond a present sorrow, Beyond a present grief, as God can see, We would be braver, knowing some tomorrow Will still hold happiness for you and me If our blurred eyes could glimpse beyond their weeping, The sunlit hills that someday we shall climb, We would be stronger, and we would be keeping A tryst with Hope through every darkened time. If we could see beyond a fresh disaster, The road smoothed out again before our eyes, We would be calmer, and we would learn the faster The lessons life unfolds to make us wise. We are so blinded by a moment's grieving, So hurt by any sorrow, any pain, That we forget the joys, beyond believing, The peace that some day will be ours again. -- Grace Noll Crowell To a Journeying Comrade To you who are bearing a load up some steep hillside, Burdened with grief and sorrow, or pain and care, I have a word to say to you, O journeying comrade: Do not despair. You never can tell at all at what near turning Some pleasant vista may meet your tired eyes To lift your spirit up and dispel your weeping. With glad surprise. You never can know what lies beyond a hilltop, Perhaps some shadowy valley, cool and sweet, Whose gentle downward sloping, after your climbing May rest your feet. Always, O comrade, there is the chance that your burden May slip from your back before the wayside dawn, And O, my comrade, no matter how hard the going, Keep on! Keep on! -- Grace Noll Crowell [*C*] "THE DAY WILL BRING SOME LOVELY THING" "The day will bring some lovely thing," I say it over each new dawn: "Some gay, adventurous thing to hold Against my heart when it is gone." And so I rise and go to meet The day with wings upon my feet. I come upon it unaware - Some sudden beauty without name: A snatch of song - a breath of pine - A poem lit with golden flame; High tangled bird notes - keenly thinned - Like flying color on the wind. No day has ever failed me quite - Before the grayest day is done, I come upon some misty bloom Or a late line of crimson sun. Each night I pause - remembering Some gay, adventurous, Lovely thing. -- Crowell -- [*Grace Noll Crowell*] Published New Volume of Poems GRACE NOLL CROWELL "Facing The Stars" By Noted Poet Is Dedicated To Burlington Man Miss Muriel Lester, who has just returned home from a visit to China and Japan, writes: 'I hope your people in India are keeping sympathetic to the fine Japanese. They are suffering acutely in mind and spirit. Many are imprisoned. Many befriending Chinese and running great risks thereby: some publicly declaring the folly of Japan's present tendencies many committing suicide; some refusing to fire a single shot at their Chinese brethren: some daring to ask themselves whether obedience to the Emperor really does mean joining the army. A dangerous query that but still the vast majority are willing to believe what they are told. Their government teaches them that they are going to China to help the poor Chinese throw off their cruel tyrants! It seems to me that almost as important as learning to read is the next job of learning not to believe what one reads" OCT 10 1941 THE BURLINGTON (N. C.) DAILY TIMES-NEWS, Dedicated to Erwin A. Holt, of Burlington, is the new book of poems by Grace Noll Crowell, "Facing the Stars" just issued by Harper and Brothers. The slim volume which sells for only a dollar bids fair to attain the popularity of Mrs. Crowell's 13 other volumes, including such loved volumes as "Splendor Quest," "Flame in the Wind," "Silver in the Sun," and others. Mrs. Crowell and her husband and one of their sons, Reid, an artist, who live in Dallas, Tex., met Mr. Holt at the Berry schools in Mount Berry, Ga., in 1938, and again in the mountains of western North Carolina in the summer of 1940 where they became fast friends. The poem from which the title of Mrs. Crowell's new volume is taken is typical of the spiritual courage of this popular woman poet whose rich flowing lines speak with authenticity of emotion: FACING THE STARS. No matter how dark the night, how deep the shadows, Still up beyond the clouds obscuring bars, Steadfast and silent, safe within God's keeping, Move the radiant self-illumined stars. So I shall face skyward though the blackness Sheds not one ray of light upon the air. I know that back of the overhanging darkness The white unfailing stars are ever there, Moving by God's remote control, and raking Their clearly outlined courses, swift and free, It comforts me to know that same great Power Controls my heart, my life, my destiny. Can it be the beauty of North Carolina's skyland that inspired the following poem? HERE ON THIS STARRY HEIGHT. The world is cleaner here than anywhere. The stars are nearer here and all the air Is spangled with their splendor. I can stand On tiptoe, almost touching with my hand The silver fruit of Heaven. I can see The leaning orchards of eternity, And God, among the weighted shining trees Feet-deep in silver globes, I think He sees My upraised hands, my eager lifted eyes For suddenly from out the startled skies One silver apple falls. Deliberately God reached a hand and shook a nearby tree. I'm sure He loosed that starry fruit for me. The true spirit of the poetess seems best expressed though in her comforting poem entitled, "Prayer for a Day's Walk," which begins: "God, let me find the lonely ones Among the throng today, And let me say the word to take The loneliness away So many walk with aching hearts Along the old highway." Many of the poems in the new book were first published in Good Housekeeping, Holland's, Christian Herald, Unity, and other religious publications. This native of Inland, Ia., was chosen the "American Mother" in 1938, and Poet Laureate of Texas in 1935. She is widely known for her "little songs which go straight to the heart of her readers who find in them courage and faith," and her writings have been published not only in this country but also abroad. She and Mr. Crowell recently celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary. Concerning Mrs. Crowell, Mr. Holt quotes the Rev. Joseph Fort Newton, who wrote: "Today her poems go all over the world, and some of them have been meat, milk and medicine to millions of people. She not only listened until she heard the answer to her prayer, but she learned to know the Answerer, as Whitman would say. Only a great Angel could tell the story of the courage, cheer, faith and fortitude which her simple songs have brought to her fellow-souls. Some of her poems -- such as "Some One Had Prayed," and "Wait" -- have been translated into many languages, set to music and sung, and kept and reread by hungry hearted men and women. Leters from all over the earth pour upon her, thanking her for help given those who walk alone in far places, and dwellers in the House of Pain." One little poem, its lines sharpened by pain and softened by sorrow, is called "A Prayer for Courage" and closes thus: God make me brave for life - Life brings such blindnig things. Help me to keep mi sight, Help me to see aright That out of the dark -- comes Light. [*1941*] Women Nearly Equal Men Legally Survey Indicates By a Staff Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor WASHINGTON, Oct. 29 - American women today have practically achieved equality with men -- on the statute books. That is the conclusion of a three- year study just completed by Miss Sara Louise Buchanan of the United States Women's Bureau as a part of a League of Nations survey of the legal status of women in various countries of the world. There are still discriminations. Oklahoma's constitution excludes women from election to eight major state offices. Wisconsin's legislative employees must be men. Twenty-three States still exclude women from jury service. In 15 States the father has the first right to the custody, services and earnings of his legitimate minor child. At the same time, Miss Buchanan points out that all differences on statute books today are not discriminations against women. Some of the distinctions, she says, arise because there are two sexes and both cannot have final jurisdiction in the same decision. Others, such as the legal age of maturity and age of consent to marriage are attributed to physical differences. Woman's Status Today Women's legal position today Miss Buchanan concludes, "is in many respects comparable with that of men, in a few respects it may be considered superior to man's, and in some important respects it is definitely inferior to that occupied by man." Major discriminations still remaining on the statue books the Women's Bureau study attributes to "mass inertia in the gearing of law to social progress, rather than a prejudiced attitude of the State toward any particular group of citizens." Married Women Better Off The Women's Bureau survey stems back to an attempt of the National Woman's Party to interest the League of Nations in international action for legal equality such as is provided for the United States in the Party's proposed equal rights amendment which has been before Congress for more exact information on the status of women in the United States and Miss Buchanan was put to work searching through constitutions official statutes and court decisions for provisions affecting women. Her survey is the most comprehensive ever made in the United States on the subject. The number Voters 15 years ago was almost doubled in Miss Buchanan's study Outside Federal reforms in suffrage and equal citizenship, the most striking reforms of the last century probably have been in the more dignified position accorded married women. Seventy-five years ago a woman's status changed immediately upon marriage. She lost all right to control of her property. She could not sue or be sued in her own name. She had no standing before the law as a separate entity. Control of her real estate passed to her husband and he could manage it and have the use of all income, rent and profits therefrom without her interference. Today, Miss Buchanan points out, "a married woman's status as a member of her family has achieved more nearly that of a partner with her husband, as to both rights and responsibilities." Marriage laws of the several States generally make no distinction between sexes. Exceptions noted are few and minor. For the most part, annulment and divorce provisions are without sex distinctions. In half the States parents are declared joint natural guardians of their minor children, with equal rights and privileges in regard to custody, services and earnings. In more than half the States parents are equally eligible to qualify for appointment as guardian of the estates of their minor children. Man Still Head of Family The husband is first liable for support of his family, but a number of States have placed liability on the wife also, usually under a condition or limitation. In all States, a married woman may own property in her right and name, but in a few she is subject to restrictions in dealing with her separate property which do not apply to a married man. The grant to the husband of choice of domicile and of custody of minor children. Miss Buchanan attributes 'largely to the policy of Transcribed and reviewed by contributors participating in the By The People project at crowd.loc.gov.