EMERSON: FATHER IN HEAVEN WE THANK THEE

2014-07  Emerson: Father in Heaven We Thank Thee

Ralph Waldo Emerson [1803-1882] was an American essayist, poet and philosopher, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century.  Emerson is also well known as a mentor and friend of fellow Transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau.

His first two collections of essays – Essays: First Series and Essays: Second Series, published respectively in 1841 and 1844 – represent the core of his thinking, and include such well-known essays as Nature, Self-Reliance, The Over-soul,  Compensation,  and Experience. 

I repeatedly read aloud Emerson's poem Father We Thank Thee to nurture an attitude of Gratitude. Whoever does this with religious regularity is bound to be immensely benefited.

Father in Heaven We Thank Thee
by Ralph Waldo Emerson

For flowers that bloom about our feet,
For tender grass so fresh, so sweet,
For the song of bird and hum of bee,
For all things fair we hear or see,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.

For blue of stream and blue of sky,
For pleasant shade of branches high,
For fragrant air and cooling breeze,
For beauty of the blooming trees,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.

For mother-love and father-care,
For brothers strong and sisters fair, 
For love at home and school each day,
For guidance lest we go astray,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.

For this new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.

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Father in Heaven We Thank Thee: YouTube Video [Click here] 

Complete Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson [Click here]

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