I blinded my eyes,
And I closed my ears,
I hardened my heart,
And I smothered my desire

I turned my back
On the vision I had shaped,
And to this road before me
I turned my face.

P.H. Pearce

Taken from the book: ‘Upon God’s Holy Hills: I, the Guides St Anthony of Egypt, St Bruno of Cologne, St John of the Cross’ by C.C. Martindale published by Forgotten Books.