Oh, now I need no longer fear
Ingratitude, the jealous smile;
For I have known the face of lies
This bitter while.
Familiarity has brought
An end to everything I fear.
I am more moved by honesty
Than by a sneer.
So having skirted sand and swamp
And having tasted briny sea,
I walk the firmer pathways of
Maturity.
And past the little hills of hate,
Beyond the little fence of fright,
I see so infinite a view
They kept from sight.
Published in The Saturday Evening Post, September 12, 1953.