HAPPINESS MAKES UP IN HEIGHT FOR
WHAT IT LACKS IN LENGTH
by Robert Frost
The days you were not swirled
Around with mist and cloud,
Or wrapped as in a shroud,
And the sun's brilliant ball
Was not in part or all
Obscured from mortal view—
Were days so very few
I can but wonder whence
I get the lasting sense
Of so much warmth and light.
If my mistrust is right
It may be altogether
From one day's perfect weather,
When starting clear at dawn,
The day swept clearly on
To finish clear at eve.
(the rest of the poem is at A Writer's Almanac)
Thank goodness for those single days or single moments that give us our lasting "fair impression." If we focus solely on the stormy times, we'll go stark raving mad. Sometimes it seems as if the universe is testing our tolerance for the number of "swirling mist and cloud" days we can tolerate, and during those time we wonder what the universe knows about us that we don't yet know about ourselves. But we are always given a day without shadows, a day where happiness is high, if not long.
May you have one of those days today!
Laura Salas at Writing the World for Kids has the Poetry Friday Roundup this week. (I promise I didn't look at her post before I chose my poem!)
Hey, Mary Lee--gorgeous poem, and in a meter I totally don't associate with Frost! I love the drama in this one, the storms, swirled, mist, brilliant ball...so many strong words creating the images.
ReplyDeleteYou're so right about those moments. My husband and I, at least once a month or so, are reminded of the magical trip we took to Scotland a couple of years ago. It was pretty darn near perfect, and reliving moments from it keep us going through a lot of stormy (or dusty!) days.
Thanks for sharing this!
(By the way, your link links back to your post--here's the poem on Writer's Almanac: http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2010/03/26)
Laura,
ReplyDeleteGlad to remind you of those perfect moments that get us through the stormy/dusty times.
Thanks for the alert about the link. Got it fixed.
Oh,this is a keeper. Thank you. I'll be pulling this out and sharing it just when needed. I hope your weekend is bright, Mary Lee.
ReplyDeleteA.
I needed this one today. Too crazy wild with everything to write much this month. Ralph Fletcher is in our building today so should be a great day.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this new-to-me poem. Yes, a little goes a long way. We had a glorious day of sunshine yesterday after many cloudy days. I'm holding on to it!
ReplyDeleteLovely Frost poem I have not read yet. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteMay your day be full of happiness!
Solitude is such a precious commodity! The world works against such a gift!
ReplyDeleteLaura Evans
Part of what makes life so sweet are those moments when out of the blue, I'm struck by the absolute gorgeousness of the world I live in. Sometimes, I'm in the middle of a crappy parking lot when this happens! I don't know why. But I'm grateful for those glimpses, which do indeed give a "lasting sense of so much warmth and light."
ReplyDeleteThat "brilliant ball" is hiding behind clouds, but no rain is predicted and my husband and I are hauling out the bikes. I was embarrassed I hadn't read this poem, but since Jama admitted likewise, I have to say it was new to me, too. It seems like a good reminder of so much.
ReplyDeleteNice to read Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost side by side, with their various takes on clouds and dust.
This poem reminds me how often our moods are affected by the weather (though Frost must have been speaking metaphorically as well as literally).
ReplyDeleteCan't say I've read this one before, either. Thanks for sharing it!
It's new to me as well, much to my chagrin and delight. Thanks so much, Mary Lee!
ReplyDelete