Do Stones Feel?

Mary Oliver 1935 (Maple Heights, OH) – 2019 (Hobe Sound, FL)



Do stones feel?
Do they love their life?
Or does their patience drown out everything else?

When I walk on the beach I gather a few
white ones, dark ones, the multiple colors.
Don’t worry, I say, I'll bring you back, and I do.

Is the tree as it rises delighted with its many
branches,
each one like a poem?

Are the clouds glad to unburden their bundles of rain?

Most of the world says no, no, it’s not possible.

I refuse to think to such a conclusion.
‘Too terrible it would be, to be wrong.

About this poem

The poet is expressing the idea that, a world in which Mother Nature is not conscious of itself isn't difficult to reject.

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Submitted by JokerGem on February 23, 2023

Modified by JokerGem on November 17, 2023

33 sec read
678

Quick analysis:

Scheme XXX AXA XXX X X XX
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 501
Words 111
Stanzas 6
Stanza Lengths 3, 3, 3, 1, 1, 2

Mary Oliver

Mary Oliver was an award-winning poet with fans throughout the world. In addition to her numerous literary prizes, as noted by New York Times, Oliver was, "far and away, this country's best-selling poet." more…

All Mary Oliver poems | Mary Oliver Books

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    "Do Stones Feel?" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/152158/do-stones-feel?>.

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