Question

For she said, “My cakes that seem too small
When I eat of them myself
Are yet too large to give away.”
So she put them on the shelf.
Then good Saint Peter grew angry,
For he was hungry and faint;
And surely such a woman
Was enough to provoke a saint.
And he said, You are far too selfish
To dwell in a human form,
To have both food and shelter,
And fire to keep you warm.
Questions :
(1) What did the lady think about the cakes she had prepared?
(2) Why did Saint Peter grow angry?
(3) How was the lady not eligible to live as a human being?

Answer 1

(1) The lady was too selfish. She thought that the cakes that she had prepared were too small for her to eat but too large/big to give them away.

(2) Saint Peter was almost fainting with hunger. He demanded to eat something from a lady who was baking cakes. Every time she went on preparing thinner and thinner cakes not enough to satisfy the hunger of Saint Peter. And these also she put on the shelf without giving away. This selfish behaviour of hers made Saint Peter angry.

(3) The lady was far too selfish and without a drop of kindness even to feed a hungry man. As a human being, she had all basic facilities of life, i.e., food, shelter and fire; but she really did not deserve to live as a human being.