Surprised by Poetry

In my youth, (lo, those many years ago) I enjoyed poetry so much that I collected my favorite poems in a spiral bound notebook. I have been pondering about whatever happened to my notebook since I began blogging because I thought the poems would be very bloggable. I couldn't imagine that I would have thrown it away, it was quite a project in its day. As time went by, and I didn't stumble across it, I kept wondering if in a fit of madness I had tossed it--as you sometimes do when you go on a super-organizing cleaning jag. Happily, I found it today while unpacking boxes of books onto my new bookcases. Here is a gem from Stephen Crane:

The Wayfarer

The wayfarer,
Perceiving the pathway to truth,
Was struck with astonishment.
It was thickly grown with weeds.
“Ha”, he said,
“I see that no one has passed here
In a long time.”
Later he saw that each weed
Was a singular knife.
“Well, “ he mumbled at last,
“Doubtless there are other roads.”