Late have I loved Thee

Late have I loved Thee,
O Beauty ever ancient, ever new!
I was searching all around me; You were all within.
I grasped at your beauty everywhere
and longed to have and hold what can but be beheld.
You attracted, I, distracted, did not see
the Giver of all gifts was gracing me.
You called, you shouted – piercing through my deafness;
You flashed, you shone – dispelling all my blindness.
You breathed your fragrance on me,
I drew my breath and now am breathless for Thee.
I tasted your sweetness and now I am famished for You –
You touched me; now I am burning for your peace.
Late have I loved Thee, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new!
I was searching all around me; You were all within.

~ The Confessions of Saint Augustine

Also see : The Augustinian manual, comprising, a 'practical prayer book', by an Augustinian father

Published 1885
Free and in public domain

HT to Concord Pastor