If only we could know
What thoughts run through the mind
Of those with whom we dwell,
What mysteries we’d find.
A brother or a friend,
May stand beside us here,
But we might never guess
What to his heart is dear.
We may, unconsciously,
Deprive ourselves of much
That we from him might gain
By just a loving touch.
His yearning for a friend,
To whom he’d ope’ his heart,
Might well be satisfied
If we this veil could part.
God grant that we might see
Beyond the outward shell
Of those, with whom we could
In spirit also dwell.
Edythe Ivey Danielson