We miss Her, not because We see—

We miss Her, not because We see—
The Absence of an Eye—
Except its Mind accompany
Abridge Society

As slightly as the Routes of Stars—
Ourselves—asleep below—
We know that their superior Eyes
Include Us—as they go—

 

           -Fr771, J993, fascicle 34, 1863

This poem is similar to Fr769, in that it "sees" seeing. In that poem the poet envisions the last vision. In this one, going a step further, beyond death, the poet sees the absence of being seen:

We miss Her, not because We see—
The Absence of an Eye—

But its not the absence of the the eye we miss, but the mind behind that eye, because the loss of Her mind is a loss to our society: 

 

Except its Mind accompany
Abridge Society

It’s not Her physical self (her Eye) that we'll miss so much as the playful liveliness of the response of Her mind, says the poet. 

Following from the idea that “the absence of Her mind abridges (lessens) society" we are given a comparison:

“As slightly as the Routes of Stars—” 

An alternative line Dickinson leaves us in the fascicle is “As scarcely as the Flights of Stars." I like the alternative because it gives us the sense of a rare shooting star lessening society by flying away, but the line Dickinson went with, "as slightly as the routes of stars" gives us more of a sense of a barely perceptible, but momentous movement. It's a whole different poem really, depending on which line you use. In this version, the "mind accompany" has now gone above, the loss of which is affecting the poet, and it is like the stars' slow and steady movement onward. But never fear, for those eyes, when we close ours, will take us with them:

Ourselves—asleep below—
We know that their superior Eyes
Include Us—as they go—

The poet is “asleep” below, her eyes, ironically, closed. The eye of the beloved has ascended, and can no longer be seen, and moreover, the mind behind that eye, sadly, will no longer affect society. But in the poet’s dreams, the mind of the dearly departed is still affecting her like the superior stars do. The eye of the beloved has become superior like the eyes of the stars. Both the stars, and the lover's mind that has joined them, take the sleeper “as they go.”

The stars, and the eyes of our lost loved ones, are enroute. They are superior now to our own eyes and are taking us with them, if we will but follow.

       -/)dam Wade l)eGraff

star trails