Ella Wheeler Wilcox - Preaching Vs Practice

It is easy to sit in the sunshine <br />And talk to the man in the shade; <br />It is easy to float in a well-trimmed boat, <br />And point out the places to wade. <br /> <br />But once we pass into the shadows, <br />We murmur and fret and frown, <br />And, our length from the bank, we shout for a plank, <br />Or throw up our hands and go down. <br /> <br />It is easy to sit in your carriage, <br />And counsel the man on foot, <br />But get down and walk, and you'll change your talk, <br />As you feel the peg in your boot. <br /> <br />It is easy to tell the toiler <br />How best he can carry his pack, <br />But no one can rate a burden's weight <br />Until it has been on his back. <br /> <br />The up-curled mouth of pleasure, <br />Can prate of sorrow's worth, <br />But give it a sip, and a wryer lip, <br />Was never made on earth.<br /><br />Ella Wheeler Wilcox<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem..../preaching-vs-practi