Once when I saw a cripple
Gasping slowly his last days with the white plague,
Looking from hollow eyes, calling for air,
Desperately gesturing with wasted hands
In the dark and dust of a house down in a slum,
I said to myself
I would rather have been a tall sunflower
Living in a country garden
Lifting a golden-brown face to the summer,
Rain-washed and dew-misted,
Mixed with the poppies and ranking hollyhocks,
And wonderingly watching night after night
The clear silent processionals of stars.
Seems to be stating the pretty obvious. I'm surprised Sandburg was so admired once.
Seems to be stating the pretty obvious. I'm surprised Sandburg was so admired once.
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
I can understand why he would prefer to be a sunflower rather than a cripple close to death.