#MIDDLEBURY
Pastoral
William Carlos Williams
The little sparrows
Hop ingenuously
About the pavement
Quarreling
With sharp voices
Over those things
That interest them.
But we who are wiser
Shut ourselves in
On either hand
And no one knows
Whether we think good
Or evil.
Then again,
The old man who goes about
Gathering dog lime
Walks in the gutter
Without looking up
And his tread
Is more majestic than
That of the Episcopal minister
Approaching the pulpit
Of a Sunday.
These things
Astonish me beyond words.
About this poem
“Pastoral” was published in Vol. 1, No. 2, of Others magazine in August 1915.
About William Carlos Williams
William Carlos Williams was born in Rutherford, N.J. A doctor as well as a major imagist poet, Williams published several collections, including “Spring and All” (1923), “Pictures from Brueghel and Other Poems” (1962) and the five-volume epic, “Paterson” (1963). He died in New Jersey in March of 1963.
The Academy of American Poets is a nonprofit, mission-driven organization, whose aim is to make poetry available to a wider audience. Email The Academy at poem-a-day@poets.org.
This poem is in the public domain. Originally published in Poem-a-Day, www.poets.org. Distributed by King Features Syndicate.
