60 TheSpiritual Life.
slipped away,at thetrials, theJoys,thehopes,
thedisappointments of the timethatthenwas,andwe marvelwhywespent so much of our
life-energy on things so little worth. Even
life'ssharpest painsseems strangelyunrealthus
contemplated bya personality that has greatly
changed. Ourwholelifewasboundupinthe
life of another, and all of worth that it held
for us seemed to dwell in the one beloved.
We thought that our lifewas laid waste, our
heartbroken,whenthatonetrustwasbetrayed.
But as time went on the wound healed and
newflowers sprang up along our pathway,till
to-daywe can look back without a quiver on
an agony that then well-nigh shattered life.
Orwe broke with afriend fora bitterword;
how foolish seem our anger and excitement,
lookingback overthe ten years' gulf. Orwe
were madly delighted witha hardly-won suc-
cess; howtrivialitlooks,andhowexaggerated
ourtriumph,whenwe seeIt nowIn due pro-
portionIn thepictureof our life; thenItfilledoursky,nowItIsbutapoint.
Butourphilosophic calm,aswecontemplate
thevictoriesand defeats of ourpast acrossthe
intervalof spaceortime,suffersanignominious