Profiles in Cranky, Misanthropic Writers #49294 HENRY VAN DYKE

The forgotten Henry Van Dyke wrote a lot of odes to nature, and seemed to be inspired to write verse on just about anything that he saw. Ah, a bird...let me write something. Ah, fishing...I can make a poetic statement. Etc. etc.

A lot of it had the message of, "I am sensitive and appreciate what I see, so let me tell you something that'll do you some good..." At least, that's the tone of some of his indulgent rhymes.

One of my favorites is of the "curb your enthusiasm" variety. So, you think it would be nice to always be happy? Hell no:

If all the skies were sunshine,
Our faces would be fain
To feel once more upon them
The cooling plash of rain.

If all the world were music,
Our hearts would often long
For one sweet strain of silence,
To break the endless song.

If life were always merry,
Our souls would seek relief,
And rest from weary laughter
In the quiet arms of grief.

Yes, in the original book it's "plash of rain," but as we often find with lousy digitalizations of public domain (and therefore defenseless) books, it's often "improved" to "splash."

Van Dyke (November 10, 1852 – April 10, 1933), who wore a fine, bushy mustache and had a commanding look in his eye, was not just a poet. He was a short story writer and a lyricist (in 1907 he premiered "Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee" sung to Beethoven's "Ode to Joy." One of his poems "Time Is" was adapted into a rock song by the group It's a Beautiful Day.

He was a clergyman, a professor of English literature at Princeton for two dozen years, and the U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg under Woodrow Wilson. He was known to Helen Keller, who, despite being deaf and blind, had a pretty good sense of what the guy as all about, and even quoted a typical Van Dyke remark he managed to communicate to her:

"Dr. van Dyke is the kind of a friend to have when one is up against a difficult problem. He will take trouble, days and nights of trouble, if it is for somebody else or for some cause he is interested in. 'I'm not an optimist,' says Dr. van Dyke, 'there's too much evil in the world and in me. Nor am I a pessimist; there is too much good in the world and in God. So I am just a meliorist, believing that He wills to make the world better, and trying to do my bit to help and wishing that it were more.'"

It should come as no surprise that he could be feisty.

In old age he let it be known that he granted autograph requests with a weary annoyance:

Being a professional lecturer, he could also give a piece of his mind while giving his treasured signature. Watta guy...