"And do the hours step fast or slow?
And are ye sad or gay?
And is your heart with your liege lord, lady,
Or is it far away?"
The lady raised her calm, proud head,
Though her tears fell, one by one:
"Life counts not hours by joy or pangs,
But just by duties done.
"And when I lie in the green kirkyard,
With the mould upon my breast,
Say not that 'She did well--or ill,'
Only, 'She did her best.'"
--Dinah Maria Mulock Craik.