“Written in Early Spring” by William Wordsworth (1770–1850)

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  I HEARD a thousand blended notes   While in a grove I sate reclined,  In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts  Bring sad thoughts to the mind.  To her fair works did Nature link  The human soul that through me ran;  And much it grieved my heart to think  What Man has made of Man.  Through primrose tufts, in that sweet bower,  The periwinkle trail’d its wreaths;  And ’tis my faith that every flower  Enjoys the air it breathes.  The birds around me hopp’d and play’d,  Their thoughts I cannot measure,—  But the least motion which they made  It seem’d a thrill of pleasure.  The budding twigs spread out their fan  To catch the breezy air;  And I must think, do all I can,  That there was pleasure there.  If this belief from heaven be sent,  If such be Nature’s holy plan,  Have I not reason to lament  What Man has made of Man?

Truth in the Balance

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Years ago, the cover of the Saturday Evening Post displayed a painting by Leslie Thrasher showing a woman buying a Thanksgiving turkey. The turkey was on the scales and the butcher is standing behind the counter. The customer, a lady of about 60, stands watching the weigh in. The butcher and the lady each had a pleased look on their faces, but a closer look reveals they each knew something of a secret. Their faces showed nothing unusual going on, but Thrasher shows us their hands. The butcher is pressing down on the scales with a thumb while the woman is pushing up with her finger. Both would resent being called thieves, or even liars. But neither saw anything wrong with a little deception.

"A little lie is like a little pregnancy--it doesn't take long before everyone knows." (C.S. Lewis)

"A false witness will not go unpunished, And he who tells lies will not escape." (Proverbs 19:5)

"But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." (Revelation 21:8)

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