w moving like mirrored
reflections the courses of their lives. The doves, however, protected
their nimble and restless, little heads from the sun; they sought for
their Paradise beneath the shadow of their wings.

BOOK II

When winter came Francis said to his friends:

"Blessings upon you for you are of God. But in my heart I am uneasy
for the cry of the geese that are flying southward tells that a famine
is near at hand, and that it is not in the purposes of Heaven to make
the earth kind for you. Praised be the hidden designs of the Lord!"

The country around them, in fact, became a barren waste. The sky let
drip a yellow light from its sack-like clouds bulging with snow. All
the fruits of the hedges had withered, and all those of the orchards
were dead. And the seeds had left their husks to enter into the bosom
of the earth.

..."Praised be the hidden designs of the Lord," said Francis.
"Perhaps it is His wish that you leave me, and each of you go your own
way in quest of nourishment. Therefore separate from me since I cannot
go with each one of you, if your instincts lead you to different
lands. For you are living and have need of nourishment, while I am
risen from the dead and am here by the grace of God, free from all
corporeal needs, a spirit as it were who had the privilege of guiding
you to this day. But whatever knowledge I have is growing less, and
I no longer know how to provide for you. If you wish to leave me, let
the tongue of each be loosed, and freely let each speak."

The first to speak was the Wolf.

He raised his muzzle toward Francis. His shaggy tail was swept by the
wind. He coughed. Misery had long been his garb. His wretched fur made
him seem like a dethroned king. He hesitated, and cast his eye upon
each one of his companions in turn. At last his voice came from his
throat, hoarse like that of the eternal snow. And when he opened his
jaws one could measure his endless privations by the length of his
teeth. And his expression was so wild that one could not tell whether
he was about to bite his master or to caress him.

He said:

"Oh honey without sting! Oh brother of the poor! Oh Son of God! How
could even I leave you? My life was evil, and you have filled it with
joy. During the nights it was my fate to lie in wait listening to
the breath of the dogs, the herdsmen, and the fires, until the right
moment came to bury my fangs in the throat of sleeping lambs. You
taught me, Oh Bl