One of the Lives

The Grateful Guy

While sometimes it seems fashionable for poets to bemoan the state of the world and existence in general, Merwin instead stops to give thanks. His poems are certainly not all rainbows and unicorns—he doesn't ignore the bad stuff—but he never forgets the cloud's silver lining. He's kind of like semisweet chocolate—a rarity among poets who prefer to dish out bitter pills.