I Contain Multitudes

At least as a poet I sit in myself loosely. I shift this way and that as if my truth is a multi-faceted diamond and the light through it comes in many colors, as if what is revealed extends beyond me into some other realm. Who do I know in this way? If I told you I would have to kill you. :D

Walt Whitman, July 1854

I apologize to Walt Whitman for taking his phrase, which appears in his very large poem, Song of Myself. Somehow I don't think he would mind much. Song is often credited as presenting the core of Whitman's poetic vision. Song was first published in 1855. It was immediately singled out for attention and remains today among the most influential poems by an American poet.

I Contain Multitudes

He levitated
straight up beyond the low branch,
past the spring green buds
onto the thin twiggy
edge of my cracked crags, over
the fence I added.
He joined the massive
crowd of alternates, the roles
I wear to know you.

May 2, 2010 1:21 PM