These are the beginning words of perhaps one of the best loved poems of the 20th Century. Mary Stewart penned this sentiment in 1904. Below is the short, but powerful poem:

    Keep us, oh God, from pettiness;

    Let us be large in thought,

    in word, in deed.

    Let us be done with fault-finding

    and leave off self-seeking.

    May we put away all pretense

    and meet each other face to face,

    without self-pity and without prejudice.

    May we never be hasty in judgment

    and always generous.

    Let us take time for all things;

    and to grow calm, serene, gentle.

    Teach us to put into action

    our better impulses,

    straightforward and unafraid.

    Grant that we may realize it is

    the little things that create differences,

    that in the big things of life we are at one.

    And may we strive to touch and to know

    the great, common human heart of us all.

    And, oh Lord God, let us forget not

    to be kind!

 Mary Stewart, April 1904

 

         Mary Stewart was a Colorado school principal in 1904 when she wrote the poem as a personal daily prayer. Later she titled the poem, A Collect for Club Women. She felt the poem might have special appeal to women.

         The first women’s organization to hear and use the Collect was the General Federation of Women’s Clubs (GFWC). The poem speaks of kind hearts and generous spirits. However  if we live as the poem is written, our lives would become sweeter, and sweet is a good thing. Recently I was asked to present a program for a ladies group and I used this poem as a model. Below are the keywords and thoughts of the program given.

    Pettiness – “A noble heart cannot suspect in others the pettiness and malice it has never felt.” Jean Racine

    Large in thought, word, and deed – “A man is great by good deeds, not by noble birth.” Chanakya

    Fault-finding — “Isn’t it kind of silly to think tearing someone else down builds you up?” Sean Covey

    Self-seeking — “It’s all about me! It’s all about my. It’s all about me, oh me, oh my.” Toby Keith

    Pretense – “When you wear a mask for so long, you forget who you are underneath.” Alan Moore

    Meet face-to-face – “Meeting together with honesty and kindness, and no texts or emails, please!” (me)

    Without self-pity —  “Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world.” Helen Keller

    Without prejudice —  “Inexperience can be overcome, ignorance can be enlightened, but prejudice will destroy you.” Mercedes Lackey

    Hasty in judgment —  “Great haste makes waste.” Benjamin Franklin

    Always generous – “A generous heart is always open, always ready to receive our going and coming. In the midst of such love we need never fear abandonment” by Bell Hooks

    Take time for all things  — “You will never find time for everything. If you want time, you must make it.” Charles Buxton

    Calm, serene, gentle – “Sweetness & kindnesses are never wrong.” (me).

    Better impulses – “Every impulse of feeling should be guided by reason.” Jane Austen

    Straightforward – “From my dad I learned to be good to people, to always be honest and straightforward.” Luke Bryan

    Unafraid – “Being fearless is not being 100 percent without fear, it’s being terrified, but you jump anyway.” Taylor Swift.

    Importance of little things – “You need to let the little things that would ordinarily bore you suddenly thrill you.” ? Andy Warhol

    In life we are at one—“In the scheme of things, we are all traveling the same journey.” (me)

    Strive to touch the human heart – “Compassion and a kind heart will see you through.” (me)

    Let us forget not to be kind – “Life is all about kindness to others, but don’t forget to be kind to yourself.” (me)

         I think the ladies enjoyed my program. I noticed some of them were even taking notes, but you see I am the one who learned that morning, and I thought I was the one teaching.

         The final words “Oh, Lord, God, let us forget not to be kind.”

    Anne McKee is a writer and storyteller. Visit her website: www.annemckee.net