You Don't Know What You've Got Until It's Gone

This quotation perfectly describes Emily Dickinson’s poem “Eden is that Old-fashioned house” as well as Adam and Eve’s departure from Eden.

Dickinson’s poem alerts the reader to a strange occurrence. When one departs from an “old-fashioned House/ [he] dwell[ed] in everyday” (1-2), he will never return to that exact situation; his returning will be “unconscious’ (Dickinson 7). This suggests that whilst not living in the house, some series of events changed him so dramatically that his own home will not seem the same.

As the first line suggests, “Eden is that Old-fashioned House” (Dickinson 1). In terms of Genesis, Adam and Eve leave Eden expecting something better. After they discover the knowledge of good and evil, they know that Eden isn’t all there is to the world. As the poem word it, Adam and Eve dwell there “without suspecting [their] abode” (Dickinson 3). What Adam and Eve discover in the outside world will eventually lead them to realize that Eden was, put simply, paradise. No harm could come to them there, and they had no burdens placed upon them, for food and other necessary supplies were given to them by God. Until their departure, they are unaware of how good they have it.

If the reader of Genesis takes the departure referenced in line 4 of Dickinson’s poem to be equivalent to Adam and Eve learning of good and evil, it is apparent immediately that the two have changed. They almost instantly feel the need to cover themselves with fig leaves. Now that they have knowledge, they can never go back to their former state of innocence. In the words of Lady Macbeth, “What’s done cannot be undone” (Shakespeare 5.1.75). No matter what Adam and Eve do, they can “discover [Eden] no more” (Dickinson 8). In these ways, Dickinson’s poem mirrors Adam and Eve’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden.

As a senior, my situation is similar to that of Adam and Eve. In the safety of my “Old-fashioned House/ [I] dwell in everyday” (Dickinson 1-2), I have been provided with unimaginable resources. I am able to be fed, sheltered, cared for by my family, loved, focused on my studies, well-traveled, and countless other things. Since I am less than 12 months away from leaving home for college, I think I have become to appreciate my Eden. I catch myself thinking about how my mommy and daddy won’t be there to have a delicious dinner waiting for me when I get home or make sure that I’m awake for school on time. Also, because I will most likely be going to school far away, I won’t often have the comfort of sleeping in my own bed or visiting with my family.

I know once I return from college, my house won’t feel the same. Eventually, whatever college campus I live on will be my home. I know that my friends from high school may or may not still be my friends. No matter what, once I leave, upon my return, my home won’t feel the same.

As the youngest child, I am almost least afraid of my family changing while I’m away. I’m used to my brothers seeming different when they come home from college. I’m most afraid that when I come home, I won’t be able to do the things I now spend my free time doing. One of those things is dancing. I’ve done ballet for 11 years at the same studio, with mostly the same people. If I dance in college, it will not ever be the same as dancing here. And, if I ever take class back home, it won’t feel the same. I will have hopefully grown as a person, and so will everyone else at my studio. Similarly to Adam and Eve, I will miss what I once had and regret not taking full advantage of it while I could.

The adage “You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone” describes the expulsion of Adam and Eve from Eden, Dickinson’s poem, and what will soon be my own life.