DAVID NOVAK
Inaugural Poem

Father in Heaven, as we face tomorrow,
Our nation led to joy away from sorrow;
Lead us away from strife sectarian,
All men created equal, man to man;
Lead us away from bigotry and hate,
From pride, and thinking ourselves over-great;
And if we stumble, Lord; yea if we fall
Let us not be defeated by it all
But rise again, and fight for what is right,
Letting compassion all our ills requite.
Lord, let us have Thy mercy, as we must
Be merciful ourselves, and true, and just,
Let us receive Thy blessing, as we go
Forward into a future we don¹t know,
Steadfast and kind, in words and action gentle,
Not treating the least wrong as incidental.
Victory¹s blessing, Lord, if there be war
We beg of Thee; but, Father, even more
We beg for our hostilities to cease
That we may find a never-ending peace.