Kennedy’s favorite) and has been quoted by academics and the common man for a hundred years – but he was not an academic as we understand that term today. He consorted with kings and presidents (he was John F. Surprisingly, Frost (1874-1963), who lived as poet in residence at Amherst College in Massachusetts most of his adult life, never finished college. It is the poem that contains this last phrase that we will examine. Most Americans know him through the phrases of his works that have embedded themselves deeply in our national consciousness:Īnd others.

It’s also hard to think of anyone who better typifies the spirit of our nation than this great soul. At the very least, his poems remind his readers of our shared humanity and the values that unite us. In every poem he seems to capture some universal value or vital message that serves as a sacred window to a greater world of light and life. Perhaps it’s because his poetry, simple and down-to-earth, contains so many profound lessons of life. Frost is easily one of my most valued companions on the journey of life.

I pick it up when I need a burst of inspiration or a metaphorical breath of fresh New England air to clear my mind. To this day, the little volume sits on my bookshelf about eighteen inches from my shoulder as I write, always ready at hand.

It’s hardly larger than most cell phones today but with much more valuable content.Įxcept for the Bible, it has to be the most read book in my library. A small book of twenty-three poems, just sixty pages long with a hard cover and dust jacket. It was one in a series called Great American Poets. I really don’t remember how many years ago it was that I bought a tiny anthology of Robert Frost poems.

Robert Frost's Poems by Robert Frost