"However, I pardon thee, if it were only for that good thought which moved thee to plant a yew beyond the rosemary bush; seeing that the yew is the emblem of eternal life, which lies beyond the grave." But the boy said, "There is no yew there, my Father." "Have I not seen it, even in a vision ?" cried the hermit.

"Thou wilt say next that all the borders are not set with hearts-ease, which indeed must be through thy industry; and whence they come I know not, but they are most rare and beautiful, and my eyes long sore to see them again." "Alas, my Father!" cried the boy, "the borders are set with rue, and there are but a few clumps of hearts-ease here and there." "Could I forget what I saw in an hour ?" asked the old man angrily.
"And did not the holy Raphael himself point to them, saying, 'Blessed are the eyes that behold this garden, where the borders are set with hearts-ease, and the hedges crowned with palm!' But thou wouldst know better than an archangel, forsooth." Then the boy wept; and when the hermit heard him weeping, he put his arm round him and said, "Weep, not, my dear Son.

And I pray thee, pardon me that I spoke harshly to thee.

For indeed I am ill-tempered by reason of my infirmities; and as for thee, GOD will reward thee for thy goodness to me, as I never can.

Moreover, I believe it is thy modesty, which is as great as thy goodness, that hath hindered thee from telling me of all that thou hast done for my garden, even to those fair and sweet everlasting flowers, the like of which I never saw before, which thou hast set in the east border, and where even now I hear the bees humming in the sun." Then the boy looked sadly out into the garden, and answered, "I cannot lie to thee.