I may, if I have but a mind,
Do good in many ways;
Plenty to do, the young may find,
In these our busy days.
Sad would it be, though young and small,
If I were of no use at all.
One gentle word that I may speak,
Or one kind loving deed,
May, though a trifle, poor and weak,
Prove like a tiny seed;
And who can tell what good may spring
From such a very little thing?
Then let me try, each day and hour,
To act upon this plan;
What little good is in my power,
To do it while I can:
If to be useful thus I try,
I may do better by and by.