Observations placeholder
Wadsworth Longfellow, Henry - Footsteps of Angels
Identifier
000035
Type of Spiritual Experience
Inter composer communication
Hallucination
Background
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet. His first wife Mary Potter died in 1835 after a miscarriage. His second wife Frances Appleton died in 1861 after sustaining burns when her dress caught fire.
A description of the experience
from Footsteps of Angels
With a slow and noiseless footstep
Comes that messenger divine
Takes the vacant chair beside me
Lays her gentle hand in mine.
And she sits and gazes at me
With those deep and tender eyes
Like the stars, so still and saint like
Looking downward from the skies.
Uttered not, yet comprehended
Is the spirit's voiceless prayer
Soft rebukes, in blessings ended
Breathing from her lips of air.
O, though oft depressed and lonely
All my fears are laid aside
If I but remember only
Such as these have lived and died.
The source of the experience
Wadsworth Longfellow, HenryConcepts, symbols and science items
Concepts
Communication with a Spirit helperSymbols
Science Items
Activities and commonsteps
Commonsteps
References
from The Poems of Longfellow [printed about 1875]