Comments on: Resuming the Memory Feed

By: Chris

Chris — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 19:50:40 +0000

So live, that when thy summons comes to join
The innumerable caravan which moves
To that mysterious realm, where each shall take
His chamber in the silent halls of death,
Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night,
Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave
Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.

By: Kesler Woodward

Kesler Woodward — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 06:20:37 +0000

Hi, Chris. Musée des Beaux Arts has always been one of my favorites, and I think there are few more worthwhile things than committing good poetry to memory. I have an almost corny, but for me, meaningful, suggestion for future commitment–the last 9 lines of William Cullen Bryant’s “Thanatopsis.” “So live that when thy summons comes to join…” I had to memorize them in 8th grade English class. Like everything else I was ever required to memorize, I’ve never been able to purge it, and I think of it surprisingly often. Kes

By: 5tein

5tein — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 22:45:32 +0000

That’s a grand idea; something I’ve been wanting to do myself for years (I think the last thing I memorized was Sweeney Among The Nightngales as a college senior). I may mirror your efforts with my own selection, though I’d love to hear about your progress as you go. Maybe culminating in a recite-off at WCET? hmm?