Poetry · Chapter
The New Year explained
The speaker encounters an old man raking leaves in the woods on a stormy New Year's morning.
What happens
The speaker encounters an old man raking leaves in the woods on a stormy New Year's morning. The man's bent posture is initially mistaken for a tripod, but he straightens to exchange a gruff New Year's greeting before returning to his work.
Themes in this chapter
Solitude and Reflection
The solitary encounter in the stormy woods highlights a moment of quiet reflection and human connection amidst nature.
The Cycle of Life and Death
The old man raking fallen leaves on New Year's Day evokes the cyclical nature of life, death, and renewal.
Characters to notice
Key passages
“He was the one man I met up in the woods / That stormy New Year’s morning”
The only person the speaker encountered in the woods on that stormy New Year's morning was this old man.
Sets the scene of a solitary, weather-bound meeting.
“Happy New Year, and may it come fastish, too”
The old man mutters a wish for the New Year to arrive quickly.
Reveals the old man's wry, perhaps weary, attitude toward the passing of time.