Mr. Whitman

I had my first google the other day (that sounds so dirty!). The person was looking for Walt Whitman. I actually feel a little badly about this as he or she was just looking for some fantastic poetry and ended up here. In an effort to remedy this I am offering up my favourite poem by Mr. Whitman for any other google stragglers that wander in here. It also happens to be the poem that is the namesake of my little corner of the internet.

O ME! O LIFE!

O ME! O life! of the questions of these recurring,

Of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities fill’d with the foolish,

Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more foolish than I, and who more faithless?)

Of eyes that vainly crave the light, of the objects mean, of the struggle ever renew’d,

Of the poor results of all, of the plodding and sordid crowds I see around me,

Of the empty and useless years of the rest, with the rest me inter- twined,

The question, O me! so sad, recurring—What good amid these, O me, O life?

Answer.

That you are here—that life exists and identity

That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.

Please check out The Walt Whitman Archive to see more of his work. But really, everyone should already have Leaves of Grass on their bookshelves!

~ by savasana on July 25, 2007.