Reverend
Wiley advised me not to divorce him
For
the sake of the children,
And
Judge Somers advised him the same.
So
we stuck to the end of the path.
But
two of the children thought he was right,
And
two of the children thought I was right.
And
the two who sided with him blamed me,
And
the two who sided with me blamed him,
And
they grieved for the one they sided with.
And
all were torn with the guilt of judging,
And
tortured in soul because they could not admire
Equally
him and me.
Now
every gardener knows that plants grown in cellars
Or
under stones are twisted and yellow and weak.
And
no mother would let her baby suck
Diseased
milk from her breast.
Yet
preachers and judges advise the raising of souls
Where
there is no sunlight, but only twilight,
No
warmth, but only dampness and cold—
Preachers
and judges!