When I Heard the Learned Astronomer
Walt Whitman
When I heard the learned astronomer,
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,
When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,
How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,
Till rising and gliding out I wandered off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Looked up in perfect silence at the stars.

***

It's over. Friday, September 14, 2001, I am returning home permantently. So long to the Arkansas School for Mathematics and Sciences. Beauty is far more precious than technicalities.

I get a part in the marching show even though I'm coming in late. Bless you, Mr. and Mrs. Wells.