This section reproduces 13 poems written by Knecht during his Waldzell student years.

In “Lament,” the speaker compares the transitoriness of existence to water taking the shape of whatever it flows through. The speaker laments that in such a fluid life, there isn’t time to feel emotions or to do real work. God shapes him continually with clay but never lets him become a static being. The speaker longs to create or to be something lasting, but only his fear perseveres.

“A Compromise” shares the simple man’s claim that he only needs two dimensions, which give life all the balance it requires. He can do without a third dimension, without depth, which would make life treacherous.

“But Secretly We Thirst…” compares the speaker’s life of serenity to a dancer and their dreams to playful choreography. However, behind this carefree exterior is a desire for reality, for unpleasant emotions, and for the physicality of suffering.

In “Alphabets,” the speaker describes writing, comparing letters to a game that any person can understand. He imagines what would happen if someone from the distant future found these writings. He wonders if this figure would understand the oneness of the human experience that the symbols represent, or if the writings would simply be fuel for their fires.