Elizabeth Barrett Browning on Tears

“And friends, dear friends,—when it shall be That this low breath is gone from me, And round my bier ye come to weep, Let One, most loving of you all, Say, "Not a tear must o'er her fall; He giveth His beloved sleep."”

“Thank God for grace, Ye who weep only! If, as some have done, Ye grope tear-blinded in a desert place And touch but tombs,—look up! Those tears will run Soon in long rivers down the lifted face, And leave the vision clear for stars and sun.”