"Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking" is a poem by Walt Whitman. The poem features a young boy walking on the beach, who finds two mockingbirds nesting and watches them. The female bird fails to appear one day, and the male bird cries out for her. The bird's cries create an awakening in the boy, who translates what the male is saying in the rest of the poem. As this happens, the boy recognizes the impact of nature on the human soul and his own burgeoning consciousness.

The Great Books Foundation is dedicated to helping people learn how to think and share ideas by educating them to become participants in, leaders of, and advocates for Shared Inquiry. More information about the Great Books Foundation can be found at www.greatbooks.org. For more information, contact Jim at (985) 249-4328 or bayoucenter@yahoo.com.