A chainless soul

Riches I hold in light esteem,

And love I laugh to scorn;

And lust of fame was but a dream,

That vanished with the morn :

And if I pray, the only prayer

That moves my lips for me

Is, "Leave the heart that now I bear

And give me liberty!"

Yes, as my swift days near their goal:

'Tis all that I implore;

In life and death a chainless soul,

With courage to endure.

Emily Bronte, The Old Stoic