Provision for the Journey

I was to be weaned from the light of her eyes, They were to beautify my life no longer. What men call Fate, inexorable forever, I know it well: I stepped back in fright. Now I’d know no other happiness either. I began at once to wean myself from you, And you, you necessary Things, you too: Nothing seemed necessary but that gaze of hers. Wine’s glow, food’s enjoyment, sleep Comfort and friends, and other delights, I denied: there was little left to remove. Now I can travel through the world at ease: Whatever I need’s to be found on every side, And I bring the indispensable with me – Love.