Dust of Snow
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
----------------------------------------------------
— Robert Frost, New Hampshire (1923),
also included in Collected Poems (1969)
Hi Friends —
April 29 was Poem in Your Pocket Day, and I had intentions of sending
y'all a batch of pocket poems on the 28th so you could print and hand
them out on 29th. But, here's the thing: no one really knows, nor does
it particularly matter, which day is actually Poem in Your Pocket Day.
So I see no problem whatsoever with handing out pocket poems on the
30th. "Dust of Snow" is, in my opinion, a perfect poem for handing out
to random strangers on the street outside the subway exit — which is
where you'll find me tomorrow morning before work. If you are so
inspired or inclined, please feel free to make any day Poem in Your
Pocket Day — for yourself, for others. More pocket-sized poems from this
and past years' poem-a-day series in print-your-own-at-home PDF format here.
I am also very excited about a project Citizen Hope is doing in San
Francisco tomorrow — organizing volunteers to read poems to elementary
school students in San Francisco. Check it out here.
Labels: NPM