When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d (Selected Excerpts)
Whitman’s Lincoln elegy braids lilac, star, and thrush into a ritual of grief and renewal in free verse.
Blueberries
Neighbors trade lively talk over a bumper crop in “Blueberries,” where burn, botany, and community meet.
Going for Water
A twilight errand becomes enchantment in “Going for Water,” where nature and imagination coexist in quiet wonder.
The Vantage Point
From solitude, Frost’s “The Vantage Point” looks upon life and death, then turns to the living earth for quiet belonging.
Revelation
In “Revelation,” Frost explores our need to hide and to be found, turning speech itself into a form of revelation.
Love and a Question
A stranger’s arrival tests a bridegroom’s compassion and fidelity in Frost’s haunting moral parable “Love and a Question.”
The Tuft of Flowers
In “The Tuft of Flowers,” a mower’s act transforms solitude into fellowship, joining labor and grace through nature.
Into My Own
A youthful vow of independence, “Into My Own” imagines walking into deep woods to become more fully oneself.
Ghost House
A ruined homestead becomes companionable in “Ghost House,” where nature and memory reclaim a life quietly.
My November Guest
In “My November Guest,” a personified Sorrow teaches the speaker to love the austere beauty of late autumn.
Mowing
Frost’s “Mowing” praises labor’s truth over fantasy: the scythe’s whisper makes craft and attention the poem’s ethics.
A Late Walk
A late-autumn walk ends with a single faded aster “to carry again to you,” turning loss into gift.