codex002489-005v

Thought Odors.
Ella Wheeler.

Not what we do, not what we say speaks for us
To fine souls here, or to the throne of Light.
Tho' words & acts be fair, God will abhor us,
And men distrust, if our hearts are not right.

Our secret aim, our hidden wish, or longing
Our silent thots of men, or worlds above
These are the tell tale forces, that come thronging
To point to us, as ones to loathe, or love.

Our thots are odors, and we cannot seal them
So close with actions, but they will creep out,
And delicately fashioned souls, will feel them
And know them sweet or vile, beyond a doubt.

Good deeds fall dead, if selfish causes guide them
Good words fall flat, that but from lips have birth
And eloquent & noble, seems beside them
The silence, or inaction, of true worth.