Monday, January 12, 2009

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening



Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.


Armani and I went out with my instructor and her big bay. We rode through the wooded trails behind a neighbor's estate. The woods were quiet and dappled with reflected sunlight. Frequently, trees and ice creaked, sending showers of powder down on us.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.


The 17.2hh big bay had an easier time striding through the snow. My little 15hh dark bay had to swim through snow over his knees.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.


Armani was very well behaved. But he did grunt and complain vociferously. When we got back, we realized we'd been out for over an hour. No wonder Armani was so tired.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.


- "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost copied from poetryfoundation.org
- Discussion of poem's meaning at english.uiuc.edu

2 comments:

Grey Horse Matters said...

That's a wonderful poem. I'm sure even though he complained, Armani had fun. It's good to get out and do something different.

jane augenstein said...

Ahhh, I LOVE that poem, i too posted it on my blog. The picture I used was of a horse I had years ago pulling a sleigh in the snow. Love the name of your blog, I too have a big bay horse that I love.