The Whistle Maker and Other Poems/Progress
(On meeting an old friend.)
The man you meet is not the man you knew,
Though bones and skin and the strong sinew
Have held their place and the heart is true.
I have builded much with bolt and screw;
I'm a larger man than the man you knew.
I have suffered pain, I have had my loss,
I have bowed my knees beneath my cross,
I've served as hireling and been the boss,
I've been rolling stone, I've gathered moss,
I have sown good gold, and I've garnered dross.
I've battled power when my strength was weak;
Talked when my heart was afraid to speak;
I've sought when men forbade me seek;
Been bold when they said I should be meek
And I have worked a month to gain a week.
I believe in God and I trust His word
He has fed me as He feeds a bird.
But many have called my faith absurd—
I know I've sinned and I know I've erred
For flesh is weak and the sight is blurred.
But a better man, a man fairly true,
Stands in the place of the man you knew,
A man who has gained a broader view,
Has found a work which he hopes to do
And to be the man which you thought you knew.
June 23, 1914.