Walt Whitman: "When I Heard at the Close of the Day"

[Rowdyboy]

When I heard at the close of the day how my name had been received with plaudits in the
capitol, still it was not a happy night for me that follow'd;
And else, when I carous'd, or when my plans were accomplished, still I was not happy;
But the day when I arose at dawn from the bed of perfect health, refresh'd, singing, inhaling the
ripe breath of autumn,
When I saw the full moon in the west grow pale, and disappear in the morning light,
When I wander'd alone over the beach, and, undressing, bathed, laughing with the cool waters and saw the sun rise,
And when I thought how my dear friend, my lover, was on his way coming, O then I was happy
O then each breath tasted sweeter-and all that day my food nourish'd me more-and the beautiful day passed well,
And the next came with equal joy-and with the next, at evening, came my friend;
And that night, while all was still, I heard the waters rolls slowly continually up the shores,
I heard the hissing rustle of the liquid and sands, as directed to me, whispering, to congratulate
me
For the one I love most lay sleeping by me under the same cover in the cool night,
In the stillness, in the autumn moonbeams, his face was inclined toward me,
And his arm lay lightly around my breast-and that night I was happy.



***I cannot begin to explain to you how this piece moves me. I have a really hard time reading it aloud (my partner and I like to read poetry and prose aloud to each other). It is truly heart-rending and speaks of a man I would have loved to have known***

[cestpaspossible]

1. I haven't read this in years

thanks for posting

[xultar]

2. !!!!!WOW!!!!! HOW BEAUTIFUL!!!!! n/t

[ET Awful]

3. Whitman was one of the greats.

SOMETIMES WITH ONE I LOVE

Sometimes with one I love I fill myself with rage for fear I effuse
unreturn'd love,

But now I think there is no unreturn'd love, the pay is certain one
way or another.

(I loved a certain person ardently and my love was not return'd,
Yet out of that I have written these songs)

__________

From Leaves of Grass/Calamus

[Rowdyboy]

5. Same sex love wasn't considered a sin to Americans of that period

Men kissed and slept in the same beds frequently. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote obvious love letters to a classmate a Harvard:

"Malcomb, I love thee more than woman
And pure and warm and equal is the feeling
Which binds as one our destinies forever"

For anyone interested,there's much more infor in this piece on homoeroticism in 19th century American literature.

http://www.ferris.edu/htmls/othersrv/diversitycounts/Jackson.htm

[ET Awful]

6. Many things weren't considered "sin" in that period . . . like caring

for other human beings in general and weird antiquated ideas like that :).

[KyndCulture]

4. I'd never read this poem.... THANK YOU!

How incredibly beautiful.