I want to read one other poem from Song in a Strange Land
before reading something from The Donner Party.
When I was a student, I thought I wanted to be a lawyer.
I was a pre-law political science student.
And this is about that time.
It's called "The Superior Court."
"I wanted to study law until I listened
to the sessions of the superior court for Durham County
and heard the prosecuting attorney address
the jury in the comfortable tone of a man talking
to his friends, to men and women who might remember days
when he played baseball, people who had seen
his picture in the paper when he was awarded
his degree on leaving law school and later read
the report of his wedding.
The defense attorney told the judge
that he was sorry to appear to plead
for many of these people who had promised in the past
to reform, though here they stood, regardless
of their word, men sober now but still unable
to describe what drew them back to find work at the farm
or repair the county roads under guard, now
and then a woman taken off the street on her fourth or fifth
offense, sent away to wash linens and learn to sew,
wearing her handmade uniform.
I wanted to practice law until I saw
how sunlight filled the high windows of the superior court
every day of the spring session while small birds made
their argument among the dogwood trees and the formal magnolia
with large, firm blossoms trembled in the air
as a breeze brought indoors the odor of the young grass
and flowers taking hold upon the Earth so sweet and wild."