'The Penitent'

	 I had a little Sorrow,
	  Born of a little Sin,
    I found a room all damp with gloom
	 And shut us all within;
   And, "Little Sorrow, weep," said I,
    "And, Little Sin, pray God to die,
       And I upon the floor will lie
     And think how bad I've been!"

       Alas for pious planning - -
	It mattered not a whit!
    As far as gloom went in that room,
      The lamp might have been lit!
    My little Sorrow would not weep,
    My little Sin would go to sleep --
    To save my soul I could not keep
       My graceless mind on it!

	 So I got up in anger,
	And took a book I had,
     And put a ribbon on my my hair
       To please a passing lad,
  And, "One thing there's no getting by --
     I've been a wicked girl," said I:
      "But if I can't be sorry, why,
	I might as well be glad!"

Edna St. Vincent Millay