He stood in the Garden of Eden
And ate the fruit of the tree.
His willed his mind to reason
And he named what he could see.
He felt him a kind of thirst,
Discovered a swift-flowing stream,
Then laid him down and was nursed
By the warmth of a thought-stirred dream.
He woke in the Garden of Eden
And from one fruit took seed
And planted more trees to free him
From future days of need.
He learned to fish for fishes,
And cooked them on a fire
He made by striking wishes
With rocks of his desire.
He made a tool for cutting,
Cut old dead branches down;
Then made a chair for sitting,
And sat with thoughts profound.
He now knew good and evil,
And thinking was very good,
While shirking it was evil—
Lazy—to be withstood.
Bright aim within him burning
He chopped half Eden to:
A perfect place of learning
With an open, airy view!

He sees a lake out yonder,
Dim mountains far arise.
He stands, steps forth in wonder,
To feed his seeking eyes.
Through innocence of being,
In strong and joyous pride,
His original self is winning
With every manly stride!
He sees her then—a woman;
Stands straight, yet pale and sad;
He offers all his wisdom;
She hears and grows more glad.
He shows his Garden Eden
And all the work he’s done
And, strong with admiration,
She thinks and thinks upon.
All night they sleep together,
Enjoying joy sublime,
And adding to self-treasure
That each one holds as “Mine.”
They wake and stand, far seeing;
The mountains still do call
And, hand in hand agreeing,
They climb and do not fall.
The world is wide about them,
They make discoveries true;
Their joyous voices shouting,
“We have new things to do!”