Grass and all that goes with It

I really like Whitman's imagery of grass. He has been able to make me (and I'm sure I'm not the only one) think about the simplistic beauty that grass represents. There is something about grass that holds meaning. I have never been one who has liked to lay in the grass. It is much to scratchy for me. However, I do enjoy plopping down on a blanket in the middle of my yard and soaking in the nature that surrounds me. That's one thing I love about having grown up in the country. It doesn't take much to feel as if you are in a large field in the middle of nowhere. Grass is peaceful.

Does anyone else love the smell of freshly cut grass? It is one of my favorites! The smell is a great reminder of summertime.

I really enjoyed the notion of grass acting as a reminder that God has dropped for us. I think this idea really speaks to how I view grass and all that it stands for. Grass is everywhere (at least around here) just as God is everywhere. It serves as a reminder to appreciate all of the little things in life. Too often I get caught up in everything that goes on, and I forget to stop and "smell the roses." Sometimes all we need is time to stop and reflect on life itself.

For me, Whitman not only provides great imagery throughout his poems, but he also leaves reminders for what is important in life. He takes something as simple as grass and complicates it in a way that provokes a deeper thinking about what surrounds us here on earth.

I will leave you with just a part of one of my favorite Whitman writings.....

#21

I am the poet of the Body and I am the poet of the Soul,
The pleasures of heaven are with me and the pains of hell are with
me,
The first I graft and increase upon myself, the latter I translate
into new tongue.

I am the poet of the woman the same as the man,
And I say it is as great to be a woman as to be a man,
And I say there is nothing greater than the mother of men.