Suppose every man should feel it
is his duty to do his own mechanical work of _all_ kinds, would society
be benefited? would the work be well done? Yet a woman is expected to
know how to do all kinds of sewing, all kinds of cooking, all kinds of
any _woman's_ work, and the consequence is that life is passed in
learning these only, while the universe of truth beyond remains
unentered.
"May 11, 1853. I could not help thinking of Esther [a much-loved cousin
who had recently died] a few evenings since when I was observing. A
meteor flashed upon me suddenly, very bright, very short-lived; it
seemed to me that it was sent for me especially, for it greeted me
almost the first instant I looked up, and was gone in a second,--it was
as fleeting and as beautiful as the smile upon Esther's face the last
time I saw her. I thought when I talked with her about death that,
though she could not come to me visibly, she might be able to influence
my feelings; but it cannot be, for my faith has been weaker than ever
since she died, and my fears have been greater."
A few pages farther on in the diary appears this poem:
"ESTHER
"Living, the hearts of all around
Sought hers as slaves a throne;
Dying, the reason first we found--
The fulness of her own.
"She gave unconsciously the while
A wealth we all might share--
To me the memory of the smile
That last I saw her wear.
Pages:
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42