Morning Coffee With Walt Whitman Poem by Michael Hunter

I have found a new companion to take my morning coffee with.
He's sharp and very observant - and he's honest.
So honest, in fact, that I'm often stunned into reflection and reverie.

Mr. Whitman's words coax from me a surprising intensity of feeling and joy,
and at the same time, cause me to have to pause and write unknown words
in my notebook, to be discovered later.

Walt is a most engaging fellow.
I picture his halo of white unruly hair and beard,
and understand more what he means as he
‘… Sounds his barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world! '

My coffee grows cold as I am swept away by his snap-shot catalogues of life around him.
I sit breathless at the end of these lists - feeling as though I've only just arrived
after a long journey abroad!

And then his wisdom and gentle heart speak to my soul and takes away my protective wall.
He speaks of ‘god-like' man,
‘… Whose human mind is but a gem in black decay enshrined.'

I weep to find such a companion of my heart.
A friend who keeps me company in the dark morning hours as my coffee slowly cools.

© 2012 Michael Hunter