Seasons, Service & Remembrance
More Caleb Davis Bradlee Poems
Featured PoemsGod’s Christmas Gift
God saw the nations sweeping by,
And heard the people’s anguished cry,
“O give us light!”
Out of the skies He sent a babe,
The humble Child in manger laid,
A striking sight!
Wise men and shepherds marched to see,
And to the Babe they bent the knee,
And presents gave!
A star stood where the Child was found,
And all the place seemed holy ground,
To men so grave.
But now that Child is Lord and King,
And unto all will blessings bring,
Who hear His voice!
He asks of each and all the heart,
And ever will His grace impart;
O world, rejoice!
Overview Short Summary
“God’s Christmas Gift” retells the Nativity as an answer to a world asking for light. The humble child in the manger is visited by shepherds and wise men, then identified in the final stanza as Lord and King.
Interpretation Meaning and Christmas Message
The poem defines the central Christmas gift not as material wealth but as the arrival of spiritual light, grace and hope. The movement from helpless infant to reigning king connects humility with divine authority. The reader’s response is not merely to observe the scene, but to offer the heart.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Incarnation: Divine help enters the world in the form of a child.
- Light: The Nativity answers the darkness and anguish of nations.
- Humility: Great spiritual importance appears in a simple manger.
- Response: The poem asks readers for inward commitment rather than presents.
Poetic Craft Contrast, Symbols and Form
Light contrasts with anguish, while the manger contrasts with kingship. The star marks sacred location and guidance. Three six-line stanzas move from the world’s need, to the Nativity scene, and finally to the poem’s religious claim and invitation.
A Day Lost
O count that day lost that sees no duty done;
No brave battles fought, and no victories won;
No great sins put down, no mighty truths attained;
No base passions lost, no solid virtues gained.
O count that day lost that finds thee not awake,
And ready for all things good for Jesus’ sake.
Day lost indeed, unless thou’rt ashamed to stay
Where thorns and thistles disfigure all the way!
O count that day lost that leads thee not to God,
Hard though be the pains, and sharp though be the rod;
That finds thee not the more holy and more strong,
And afraid of nothing but the path of wrong.
Overview Short Summary
“A Day Lost” measures a day by moral progress rather than comfort or productivity alone. A useful day includes duty, resistance to wrongdoing, growth in virtue and movement toward God.
Interpretation Meaning and Moral Lesson
The poem asks readers to evaluate ordinary time seriously. A day is “lost” when it produces no inward change, courageous action or service. Bradlee’s standard is demanding, but its practical point is clear: spiritual life is built through repeated daily choices.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Daily responsibility: Each day offers opportunities for duty and improvement.
- Moral struggle: Virtue is presented as something gained through effort.
- Spiritual growth: Progress toward God is a measure of meaningful time.
- Courage: The only fear encouraged is fear of choosing what is wrong.
Poetic Craft Repetition, Metaphor and Tone
The repeated command “O count that day lost” gives the poem the force of a moral refrain. Battles and victories turn inner discipline into conflict imagery, while thorns and thistles symbolize a neglected or harmful path. The tone is firm and exhortative.
The Old Year and the New
Gone forever out of our sight,
Its good and bad, its wrong and right,
The grand Old Year!
Just like a bride, all dressed in white,
All full of love and grace and light,
The blest New Year!
Passed up to God, and left for aye,
Weighed down by age and great decay,
The loved Old Year!
With youthful look and full of peace,
Having of life a twelve months’ lease,
The good New Year!
Away from sight, no more to give,
With not another day to live,
The old, Old Year!
With gifts of love and holy cheer,
With all things great and good and dear,
All hail, New Year!
Thanks for the past, and all that’s given
Of light and strength and truth and heaven,
Great thanks, Old Year!
And hope for every coming day,
That wisdom’s light may guide our way,
All hope, New Year!
Overview Short Summary
“The Old Year and the New” stages a farewell and welcome at the same time. The worn Old Year passes away carrying both good and bad experiences, while the New Year arrives like a young bride with light, peace and possibility.
Interpretation Meaning and New Year Message
The poem encourages gratitude without pretending that the past was perfect. Wrong and right are remembered together. The future is not guaranteed success—it receives only a twelve-month “lease”—but it can still be welcomed with hope and a desire for wise guidance.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Change: Time continually replaces what has ended with what is beginning.
- Gratitude: The speaker thanks the past for lessons and strength.
- Hope: The New Year represents fresh possibility.
- Mortality: Personified years age, leave and make room for successors.
Poetic Craft Personification, Contrast and Refrain
The two years become human figures: one aged and departing, the other youthful and dressed like a bride. Repeated exclamations—“Old Year!” and “New Year!”—create a ceremonial rhythm. Contrasts between age and youth, decay and light, farewell and welcome shape the entire poem.
The Ocean
I looked upon the Ocean, and calm it seemed, and fair,
The peace of the Almighty was surely resting there!
I listened to the Ocean, its ripples and its swell;
The voice of the Eternal, a message seemed to tell!
I bowed before the Ocean and all its fearful rage,
Restrained by the good Father who made the shores its cage!
I stood by the old Ocean, and thought about our life,
Its days so full of changes that pass from calm to strife!
And the Ocean seemed to speak of a more gracious shore,
Where God would stay our billows and bless us evermore!
Overview Short Summary
“The Ocean” moves from calm water to sound, storm and reflection. The sea becomes an image of human life, which also shifts between peace and conflict. Its final “gracious shore” suggests a future state where instability ends.
Interpretation Meaning and Central Comparison
The poem reads nature as a religious message. Calm water suggests divine peace, the sea’s voice suggests revelation, and violent waves suggest life’s changing pressures. The shore offers both physical boundary and spiritual hope: disorder is contained and may eventually give way to rest.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Nature and faith: The natural world becomes evidence of divine presence.
- Change: Life, like the ocean, moves between calm and struggle.
- Divine order: The shore symbolizes limits placed on chaos.
- Hope beyond hardship: A more peaceful shore lies beyond present storms.
Poetic Craft Personification, Symbolism and Sound
The ocean appears to speak, turning natural sound into spiritual instruction. Waves symbolize changing circumstances, while the shore symbolizes stability and final peace. Rhyming couplets and repeated first-person verbs—looked, listened, bowed and stood—organize the speaker’s growing response.
Our Departed Ones
Strange murmurs from the other land
Strike right across the heart;
And all around, a spirit band,
Their cheering light impart.
Voices that were hushed long ago
Again arouse our soul;
And the tears will unbidden flow,
As echoes round us roll.
Yes, with us by faith’s sacred call,
And by hope’s blessed way!
They will visit us, each and all,
By night, as well as day.
It is an inward power they bring,
These dear ones from above!
It is in angel tones they sing,
All full of peace and love!
Along with Jesus at our side,
Their constant help they give;
And they in Him all trust confide!
So would they have us live.
Overview Short Summary
“Our Departed Ones” imagines deceased loved ones remaining close through memory, faith and inward influence. Their voices are no longer physically heard, but the speaker feels that their example continues to offer comfort and guidance.
Interpretation Meaning and Grief
The poem responds to grief by refusing to treat relationship as completely ended. The “visits” are spiritual rather than literal scenes: remembered voices, values and affection still affect the living. Tears remain part of the experience, but they exist beside hope rather than hopelessness.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Remembrance: Past voices continue through memory.
- Grief: Emotional pain is acknowledged openly.
- Spiritual continuity: Love is imagined as surviving physical death.
- Example: The departed encourage the living toward faithful conduct.
Poetic Craft Sound Imagery, Light and Tone
Murmurs, voices, echoes and angel tones create a poem built around remembered sound. Light represents comfort and continuing spiritual presence. The tone is mournful but reassuring, moving from the shock of memory toward peace and moral guidance.
Poet, Christian Themes & Sources
Caleb Davis Bradlee: Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Caleb Davis Bradlee?
Caleb Davis Bradlee (1831–1897) was an American Unitarian minister, writer and poet associated with Boston and Dorchester, Massachusetts. He studied at Harvard and the Cambridge Divinity School and served several churches, including the Harrison Square Church.
What are Caleb Davis Bradlee’s best-known poems?
The titles most often found in modern searches and Christian-poetry collections include “Where Is God?,” “Let Your Light Shine,” “God Knows Best,” “I Love to Think of Jesus,” “Eternal Life,” “A Day Lost,” “God’s Christmas Gift” and “Only a Little While.”
What is Eternal Life by Caleb Davis Bradlee about?
“Eternal Life” expresses confidence that death is followed by renewed life with God and Christ. Its recurring language of living again turns the poem into an affirmation of resurrection and “eternal birth.” The full poem is not reproduced on this page because it was not located in the selected 1880 source scan.
What is Listening for God by Caleb Davis Bradlee about?
“Listening for God” presents divine communication through Christ, nature and the human heart. Its main idea is that spiritual attention should recognize God not only in formal worship but also in conscience, the natural world and daily inward life. Its full text is not reproduced here because it was not found in the selected verified scan.
Which Caleb Davis Bradlee poems are about God and Jesus?
“Where Is God?,” “God Knows Best,” “Let Your Light Shine” and “The Ocean” focus on God’s presence and guidance. “I Love to Think of Jesus,” “God’s Christmas Gift” and “Only a Little While” address Jesus, salvation, resurrection and peace after death.
Which Caleb Davis Bradlee poems are suitable for Christmas and New Year?
“God’s Christmas Gift” retells the Nativity and presents Jesus as God’s gift of light. “The Old Year and the New” combines gratitude for the passing year with hope and prayer for the year beginning.
What is A Few Poems by Caleb Davis Bradlee?
A Few Poems is an 1880 collection published under the abbreviated name C. D. Bradlee. The digitized volume contains Christian, memorial, seasonal and occasional poems, including most of the texts reproduced on this page.
Are Caleb Davis Bradlee’s poems public domain?
Yes. Bradlee died in 1897, and the selected volume was published in 1880. The digitized source is marked public domain in the United States and in countries whose copyright term is the author’s life plus 100 years or fewer.
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