O, may I join the choir invisible
  Of those immortal dead who live again
  In minds made better by their presence; live
  In pulses stirred to generosity,
  In deeds of daring rectitude, in scorn
  Of miserable aims that end with self,
  In thoughts sublime that pierce the night like stars,
  And with their mild persistence urge men's minds
  To vaster issues.
  May I reach
  That purest heaven,--be to other souls
  The cup of strength in some great agony,
  Enkindle generous ardour, feed pure love,
  Beget the smiles that have no cruelty,
  Be the sweet presence of good diffused,
  And in diffusion ever more intense!
  So shall I join the choir invisible,
  Whose music is the gladness of the world.