Passers-by by Carl Sandburg

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend January 3, 2015   Passers-by   Carl Sandburg

Passers-by, Out of your many faces Flash memories to me Now at the day end Away from the sidewalks Where your shoe soles traveled And your voices rose and blent To form the city’s afternoon roar Hindering an old silence.   Passers-by, I remember lean ones among you, Throats in the clutch of a hope, Lips written over with strivings, Mouths that kiss only for love, Records of great wishes slept with,         Held long And prayed and toiled for:           Yes, Written on Your mouths And your throats I read them When you passed by.            This poem is in the public domain. About This Poem   “Passers-by” was published in Sandburg’s book Chicago Poems (H. Hold and Company, 1916).   Carl Sandburg was born in Galesburg, Illinois, in 1878. He published numerous books of poetry and won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. Sandberg died in Flat Rock, North Carolina, in 1967.   Photo Credit: Elizabeth Buehrmann Poetry by Sandburg   Chicago Poems (Dodo Press, 2009) "The Fire" by Katie Ford "Translator’s Confession, 3 a.m." by Idra Novey "Love Letter to a Stranger" by Jenny Browne Poem-a-Day   Launched during National Poetry Month in 2006, Poem-a-Day features new and previously unpublished poems by contemporary poets on weekdays and classic poems on weekends. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038