A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials.

A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials.

God prepares great men for great tasks by great trials.

God prepares great men for great tasks by great trials.

The child of trial, to mortality
And all its changeful influences given;
On the green earth decreed read more

The child of trial, to mortality
And all its changeful influences given;
On the green earth decreed to move and die,
And yet by such a fate prepared for heaven.

Pray, pray, thou who also weepest,--
And the drops will slacken so;
Weep, weep--and the watch thou read more

Pray, pray, thou who also weepest,--
And the drops will slacken so;
Weep, weep--and the watch thou keepest,
With a quicker count will go.
Think,--the shadow on the dial
For the nature most undone,
Marks the passing of the trial,
Proves the presence of the sun.

Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil, and let us see what we are made of.

Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil, and let us see what we are made of.

There are no crown-wearers in heaven who were not cross-bearers
here below.

There are no crown-wearers in heaven who were not cross-bearers
here below.

The longest absence is less perilous to love than the terrible trials of incessant proximity.

The longest absence is less perilous to love than the terrible trials of incessant proximity.

But noble souls, through dust and heat,
Rise from disaster and defeat
The stronger.

But noble souls, through dust and heat,
Rise from disaster and defeat
The stronger.

'Tis a lesson you should heed,
Try, try, try again.
If at first you don't succeed,
read more

'Tis a lesson you should heed,
Try, try, try again.
If at first you don't succeed,
Try, try, try again.