(*Quote of the month)
And nature, the old nurse, took
The child upon her knee,
Saying, “Here is a story book
My Father hath writ for thee.
Come, wander with me,” she said,
“In regions yet untrod,
And read what is still unread
In the manuscripts of God.”
~~ Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was a 19th Century American poet, writer, and
educator. A true romantic, and wildly popular in his day, his work came under
criticism after his death for being somewhat sentimental and catering to the
masses. But since I am a pretty sentimental guy and don’t mind people catering
to me, I find I enjoy a good bit of his work! And that for the same reason that
I like cheesy Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals and the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life!”
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| White Sands Nat'l Monument, NM |
Though he is not categorized with the transcendentalist
movement exemplified by Emerson, Thoreau and Whitman, some of the themes common
to that movement, such as nature and theism, are well apparent in Longfellow’s
writing. My favorite is Evangeline, a beautiful love story
of an Acadian couple separated in their youth and reunited in their old age.
Being a lover of the Northwoods, I find The Song of Hiawatha also a very
pleasant read. I have both on my phone and refer to them from time to time
while standing in a slow line. (You can download either for free through Gutenberg or Amazon.) The quote above is an excerpt from one of his
abundant shorter poems.
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| Ottawa Nat'l Forest, MI (Photography by R&G Mylander) |
Many writers speak of nature as ‘the book of God,’ or, as in
Longfellow’s case here, the manuscript of God. That concept is even alluded to
by the Apostle Paul in the Epistle to the Romans: …What
may be known about God is plain to people, because God has made it plain to
them. For since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities—his
eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from
what has been created, so that people are without excuse [when they say
they have had no way to know God]. (Romans 1:19-20, parentheses mine)
So, if you’ll pardon me, I think I’ll go read the book. Join me?
~RGM, February 11, 2013
real comment: The "book of God" was all white in Chicago today -- the first snow over 2 inches that we've had all winter. It was beautiful last night coming down and beautiful on the ground this morning. Looking forward to seeing you next weekend. cm
ReplyDeleteI am looking forward to seeing you, too. Amazing that Chicago has gotten so little snow this winter. We have been short of it here, too, but not that short. A storm is coming in overnight tonight, though, five to twelve inches. We could use it, need the moisture.
ReplyDelete