In the Morning of Life
by Thomas MooreIn the morning of life, when its cares are unknown,
And its pleasures in all their new lustre begin,
When we live in a bright-beaming world of our own,
And the light that surrounds us is all from within;
Oh 'tis not, believe me, in that happy time
We can love, as in hours of less transport we may; —
Of our smiles, of our hopes, 'tis the gay sunny prime,
But affection is truest when these fade away.
When we see the first glory of youth pass us by,
Like a leaf on the stream that will never return,
When our cup, which had sparkled with pleasure so high,
First tastes of the other, the dark-flowing urn;
Then, then in the time when affection holds sway
With a depth and a tenderness joy never knew;
Love, nursed among pleasures, is faithless as they,
But the love born of Sorrow, like Sorrow, is true.
In climes full of sunshine, though splendid the flowers,
Their sighs have no freshness, their odour no worth;
\‘Tis the cloud and the mist of our own Isle of showers
That call the rich spirit of fragrancy forth.
So it is not \‘mid splendour, prosperity, mirth,
That the depth of Love's generous spirit appears;
To the sunshine of smiles it may first owe its birth,
But the soul of its sweetness is drawn out by tears.
As we welcome in a new decade, we all could use a little bit of positivity to kick off the new year. Fresh beginnings and all. Fortunately, Sam Smith is here to do just that. On January 5, the talented musician took to Instagram to share a photo showing himself sitting on a boat while on vacation. You know, living his best life. But it was the caption that was directed towards his fans.
Smith talked about how, in the past, they didn’t feel comfortable enough to have their shirt off in public like at a pool or beach. “Feel so good to have my top off on holiday. Spent all my life hiding my body from the sun. The last year my skin has been soaking in that LIGHT.”
Smith spoke about wanting their fans to see themselves in that same light. He urged them to push against the negative emotions that can often cloud joy. “Don’t let anyone or anything stop you from feeling that kiss from above you beautiful humans,” they said.
Many stars showed their support for SMith, including Munroe Bergdorf, Parson James, and recent Golden Globe winner Taron Egerton.
This isn’t the first time that Smith opened up about their struggles with body positivity and self-love. Throughout 2019, Smith used their Instagram page to speak about the evolution of their own self-image and how they had come to love their body. “Some may take this as narcissistic and showing off but if you knew how much courage it took to do this and they body trauma I have experienced as a kid you wouldn’t think those things,” they wrote in a post last February.
We all could use this incredibly heart-warming post. Thank you, Sam Smith!