Unharvested: Robert Frost

A scent of ripeness from over a wall.
And come to leave the routine road
And look for what has made me stall,
There sure enough was an apple tree
That had eased itself of its summer load,
And of all but its trivial foliage free,
Now breathed as light as a lady's fan.
For there had been an apple fall
As complete as the apple had given man.
The ground was one circle of solid red.

May something go always unharvested!
May much stay out of our stated plan,
Apples or something forgotten and left,
So smelling their sweetness would be no theft.

I've always liked Robert Frost. I like his thoughtfulness, care for nature, and sort of slow cadence that makes you picture every line. I find that I enjoy poetry that creates scenes in my mind; it's easier for me to 'get' the metaphor. Maybe that's why I dream that way.

Anyway. This project is not going to be like a big English assignment. I'm just going to write what I think. Analyze or not. Random associations. Etc. It's just for me.

So this poem makes me think of a couple of things. First, of our apple tree in our back yard, growing up (and how much I hated harvesting apples, although I can still hear the sound they make when tossed into the buckets).

(side note: an advantage to getting up early with Terri and then doing this is that I get to see the sunrise -- it's so beautiful this morning!)

I also like the line, "May much stay out of our stated plan." This reminds me not to plan too carefully. Leave room for happy surprises, for apple falls that require time to enjoy.

It also makes me think of wabi-sabi, that Japanese term for a certain type of imperfect beauty (to put it very loosely). Things falling as they may. I like to think about living my life with this sort of attentive unplanned-ness... making plans, but allowing for random events and appreciating their beauty.