Kahlil Gibran

When love beckons to you, follow him,
Though his ways are hard and steep.
And when his wings enfold you yield to him,

Though the sword hidden among his
pinions may wound you.

And when he speaks to you believe in him,
Though his voice may shatter your dreams as
the north wind lays waste the garden.

For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you.
Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning.

Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your
tenderest branches that quiver in the sun,
So shall he descend to your roots and shake them
in their clinging to the earth.

~ Kahlil Gibran, from The Prophet