A mere whit of a man

[chelidon]

I took the opportunity this morning to reread Walt Whitman's brilliant, wild, undisciplined and rambling Leaves of Grass (from which comes the famous quote, "I too am not a bit tamed—I too am untranslatable; / I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.")

And I found a few gems I had forgotten, bits of truth and beauty poured from the soul of Walt, that spoke to me especially this beautiful cool sunny Fall morning, after nearly a week of rain which has filled the streams to raucous unruly turbulence. Here's one:

"Smile, O voluptuous, cool-breath’d earth!
Earth of the slumbering and liquid trees;
Earth of departed sunset! earth of the mountains, misty-topt!
Earth of the vitreous pour of the full moon, just tinged with blue!
Earth of shine and dark, mottling the tide of the river!
Earth of the limpid gray of clouds, brighter and clearer for my sake!
Far-swooping elbow’d earth! rich, apple-blossom’d earth!
Smile, for your lover comes!"

Comments

[redwill.livejournal.com]

He's damned good. High energy. Imaginative, original use of the language. One wishes there had been more poets like him since his day, but if there'd been, we might appreciate him less. :)

[swansister.livejournal.com]

Oh my, I just bought a copy of "Leaves of Grass" by Whitman and "On Man and Nature" by Thoreau this weekend at the flea market!!

Seeing your post makes me even more excited about reading "Leaves of Grass"!

Happy Face,

Swan

[chelidon.livejournal.com]

Oh, I think you'll like it! My experience of it is something like "ramblerambleramble...WOW." It'll be meandering along, then something will come along that socks me right between my eyes and I just have to stop and breathe. Yum.

[(Anonymous)]

At first perusal I liked parks of the poem, "The Trumpeter"!

Delicious stuff, and you are right, I found much of it rather rambly.

Swan

The Trumpeter

[swansister.livejournal.com]

At first perusal I liked parts of the poem, "The Trumpeter"!

Delicious stuff, and you are right, I found much of it rather rambly.

Swan