late 1882

Dear friend,

Thank you for being willing to see me, but may I defer so rare a pleasure till you come again? Grief is a sable introduction, but a vital one, and I deem that I knew you long since through your shielding thought.

I hope you may have an electrical absence, as Life never loses it's startlingness, however assailed - "seen of Angels" only, an enthralling Aim.

Thank you for the kindness, the fervor of a stranger the latest forgot.

E. Dickinson.