I had no time to Hate—

I had no time to Hate—
Because The Grave would hinder Me—
And life was not so
Ample I
Could finish—Enmity

Nor had I time to Love—
But since
Some Industry must be—
The little Toil of Love—
I thought
Be large enough for Me—



      -Fr763, J478, fascicle 34, 1863

The two stanzas reflect one another. Each shines a light on the flip side. Life is a choice between hate and love. But it's a bogus choice.

The poem is comparing the two sides to make a point. I picture it shaking its head at the reader. Really, you have this little time left and you are going to use it for hating? To what end? You’re never going to get to the end of that hate. So what are you doing? How are you going to choose to expend the little energy that you have left? 

It has to be loving, right? But love means, for starters, not hating. Not hating starts with forgiving, though, and forgiving is hard. It's "toil." This poem is pointing toward something difficult. The things that disappoint us disappoint us terribly. But we have a choice. Forgiving is a choice. We have little time left to make it.

I think of Prospero in The Tempest. When his every third thought is on death, he drops his rage, which also means dropping his powerful magic, and chooses to forgive. He would rather die in peace than have all the power in the world. 

This poem reminds us that you must toil for love, and that, considering the clock, it is better to start sooner than later.

Woman by Leonardo Da vinci

Note: Emily rhymes herself throughout this poem.




Emily:




Emnity




Hinder me




Industry




Ample I




Enough for me