The Quiet Ways

Walk slowly when you walk in lanes
For there is much to see -
The russet bracken on the banks,
The structure of a tree -
When autumn winds have stripped it naked,
Bare against the sky.
You'll never know what you have missed,
if rushed, you hurry by.
 
Tread softly when you enter churches.
This is holy ground.
A mind attuned to quietness
Can catch the muffled sound -
Of all the prayers and all the praises
That have risen here.
Voices echo in the silence
For the listening ear.
 
Go gently as you go along
The noisy ways of life.
Move graciously amongst the crowds,
The turmoil and the strife....
Speak lovingly to children,
To the stranger and the friend.
Speak kindly....
Never with your tongue, your fellow man offend.