Hawaii Poet W.S. Merwin Died Today at Age 91

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

W.S. Merwin, long time resident of Maui, poet, and avid palm collector died today on Maui. He will be missed:

One of America's most respected and enduring poets, W.S. Merwin, has died. Merwin's poetry is known for its mystery and wonder, and he was twice named the U.S. poet laureate. He also won a National Book Award and two Pulitzer Prizes.

Merwin died today in his sleep at his home in Hawaii. His death was announced by his publisher, Copper Canyon Press. He was 91 years old.

https://www.npr.org/2019/03/15/509122300...dies-at-91

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

W.S. Merwin, one of the most highly decorated poets in the nation, and very likely the world, has died at 91. - The New York Times

He lived in Hawaii since the 1970’s, so much of what he wrote, and wrote about occurred in and around his valley homestead near Haiku, Maui. If you’re not familiar with Mr. Merwin’s work, there are plenty of favorite poems quoted among the tributes here:
https://mobile.twitter.com/search?q=W.%20S.%20Merwin&src=typeahead_click

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

From Edward Hirsch in the Paris Review:

My first visit to his land in Hawaii was when I interviewed him for The Paris Review’s Writers at Work series. Every morning, we talked the morning away. In those days, you could see the ocean from his living room, though later the view was covered by pine trees. “I can always go down to see the sea,” he said. He was over fifty when he moved to Hawaii. He discovered it and it discovered something in him. He found a place, a way of being to believe in. I found the landscape too overwhelming to write in. He dug in—tending the land, tending his poetry.

He was an evangelist of nature. He believed that plants and trees had their own personalities, and he held this belief matter-of-factly. He had a slightly misanthropic side—he couldn’t stand what we were doing to the planet—and found consolation in his dogs, whom he adored. There were always three or four of us when we walked.

William Merwin was an American original. He is like a great pine tree that has fallen. His work is going to live on, but I can’t get over his loss.

https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2019...s-wedding/

[Rob Tucker]

William Merwin's life and passing was discussed on NPR today. An interesting life examined and remembered.