On a Grey Thread/I Must Be Far
I Must Be Far
I must be far from men and womenTo love their ways.I must be on a mountainBreathing greatly like a treeIf my heart would yearn a littleFor the peopled, placid valley.I must be in a bare placeAnd lonely as a moonTo find the graceless ways of peopleWorthful as a flower's ways,A flower that lives for lovelinessAnd dies when beauty dies.
I cannot find musicOn the tongues of men and womenUnless I hear their voicesLike echoes, silence-softened.Their many words mean little.Their mouths are blatant sparrows.
I must be far from men and women,As God is far away,To keep my faith with Beauty,My heart sweet towards them,And love them with a god's tranquility.