quote · Legacy record
Talk happiness! The world is sad enough, Without your woes. No path is wholly rough; Look for the places that are smooth and clear And speak of those who rest the weary ear Of earth, so hurt by one continuous strain Of human discontent and grief and pain. Talk health! The dreary, never changing tale Of mortal maladies is worn and stale. You cannot charm or interest or please, By harping on that minor chord, disease. Say you are well, or all is well with you, And God shall hear your words and make them true.
Talk happiness! The world is sad enough, Without your woes. No path is wholly rough; Look for the places that are smooth and clear And speak of those who rest the weary ear Of earth, so hurt by one continuous strain Of human discontent and grief and pain. Talk health! The dreary, never changing tale Of mortal maladies is worn and stale. You cannot charm or interest or please, By harping on that minor chord, disease. Say you are well, or all is well with you, And God shall hear your words and make them true.
Approximate author period: c. 1866 AD · industrial
Meaning not yet available
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Begin with source-checked readings and explanations ↗Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Attribution: attributed - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Approximate author period: c. 1866 AD · industrial
Approximate author-period evidence for Ella Wheeler Wilcox: documented activity in 1866. Wikidata Q448376, inspected 2026-10-08. Not a quotation composition date or independent verification of attribution. Source: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q448376 (accessed 2026-10-08).
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken. - Recorded source
- The Optimist’s Good Morning (1911) (1911 AD)
Complete signed selection 11; printed byline: Ella Wheeler Wilcox; Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1911; printed copyright 1907
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.