I walked a mile with Pleasure;
She chatted all the way;
But left me none the wiser
For all she had to say.
I walked a mile with Sorrow,
And ne’er a word said she;
But, oh! The things I learned from her,
When sorrow walked with me.
-Robert Browning Hamilton
This poem was left on my door by a very beloved neighbor after my firstborn son died. I committed it to memory that day and have quoted it to many, many people who have honestly appreciated the content.
Thank you Ted, for sharing that with me and the readers here. It means a lot.
Best,
Nina
It is very poem of poetry! tone of song! music of thoughts, and tune of ears… hauntingly memorable! tasteful!
My Grandfather got me to memorize this poem when I was 8 years old (he passed away when I was 18 but left me with this wonderful nugget of knowledge for a lifetime) – it has helped me for over more than 3 decades to handle some really hard trials. Robert Browning Hamilton certainly knew a lot about what develops character!
what is the general meaning of this poem (pleasure and sorrow)
We ‘know’ in silence, maybe because in sorrow we ponder about the things that might have been. Thank you for making life more beautiful for me today.
Thank you, Golda. For making MY life more beautiful for me today with your lovely comment.
With love,
Nina
Heard this quoted by Adrian Rogers today. He’d forgotten who the author was, and I hurried to google it and see if there were more.
stumbled upon this poem by accident while i was leaving a 9.5 year relationship, it has made me stronger, it has made me more courageous, it just sang to my soul and it provided a background beat on which i moved through my days post break-up…heartbreakingly beautiful for me
Such a true poem. Learn from your sorrow!
Ditto @ Bob–I heard it on Adrian Rogers this afternoon and Googled it. It is a wonderful poem. I will make it a memory assignment to my children for our English lessons. King David said in the Psalms: “It was good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes.” Psa/ 119:71
Thanks for posting this, Nina. It is a great treasure to share with a friend going through tough times!
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I thought it was “I walked a mile with gladness…”
This poem appears in A BOOK OF PERSONAL POEMS, compiled and edited by William R. Bowlin and published by Albert Whitman Company of Chicago, Illinois in 1946. I purchased a copy of the book on May 29, 1960. In this anthology this poem by Robert Browning Hamilton is titled “Along the Road.” I have read, memorized and thought of this poem a number of times in the years since I first read it.
Thank you so much for sharing your story and a little background information on the poem, Raymond. This poems has been very meaningful to me as well.
Be well!
Nina
God knows exactly when we need a word of enlightenment.
Thanks
Bless you, and have a wonderful day! It is my pleasure to share this poem that I first read when I was 11 years old in an old book of poetry given to mother when she was in college.
I am going through a divorce after 34 (nearly 35) years with my husband. I heard this poem recited in an audiobook I’m listening to and hurried to google it because the words in it convey the mantra I’ve been trying to repeat to myself through this most excrutiating of times. Thank you for posting it…
I first heard this poem read by a minister at a funeral. Being a young funeral director at the time it stuck in my head and I went about trying to find who wrote it and I wanted to read the entire poem if their were more. This was in the days before google and the internet but I eventually found it in an old college poetry textbook. I had it printed and mounted in a frame so I could see it often. As a older funeral director I can’t express how perfect the feeling and meaning of this poem is to anyone suffering from the loss of a loved one or just going through the trials we have in life. It often reminds me of my own childhood and hardships our family had growing up and it fits so perfectly to those tough times.
First time i read this poem ,i felt that some thing around it is hidding ,
I DONT know What or Why !
such a poetic peom,,
thank u 4 posting this
be fine 🙂
This poem was quoted by Kathryn Kuhlman in one of her radio sermons. I first heard it in the late seventies, and have never forgotten it’s wise message. Thanks for posting!
[…] 2. I Walked a Mile with Pleasure […]
Alguem poderia me passar esse poema completo por favor, em um momento de dor um amigo americano me enviou e eu gostei muito, mas como pude perceber aqui, tem mais alguma parte dele, então por favor me enviem….
desde já agradeço…
Could someone pass me the full poem please in a moment of pain an American friend sent me and I really liked, but as I see here, have any more of it, so please send me ….
I thank you …
mano.nascimento@gmail.com
This is a simple poem but also one of my favorites. Even now when I am on the cusp of ending my own life I can take a certain kind of comfort from this poem. I walked with both pleasure and sorrow in my life and it really was sorrow which taught me the most.
This a great, meaningful poem, that our evangelist shared with us at a memorial for a six month old baby boy in 7.17.2010. It has touched me ever since and I have shared it with many. I am about to hand it to a neighbor who lost her son three months ago. Thank you for this!
I love the use of walking a steady pace. Life doesn’t ever actually speed up or slow down it just keeps moving. Silence leaves you in your head, having someone with you in silence leaves you thinking all the things that someone outside you could think. Eventually you have to realize that you are projecting your ideas and beliefs onto them and faced with those realities you grow. Pleasure is relief from growth spurts.
[…] 1. I Walked a Mile with Pleasure […]
I first heard it w/ “gladness” rather than “pleasure,” too. It was recited by the priest at the funeral of Barbara Olson, wife of Ted Olson. She was a passenger on the 9/11 plane that crashed onto the Pentagon.
[…] 2. I Walked a Mile with Pleasure […]
When was this poem written?
Hi! I have nominated you for a WordPress Very Impressive Blog Award. If you are not interested in participating, that is fine—but perhaps you’ll get a few extra well-deserved readers just from the nomination as I posted your url on my WordPress site! Go here for an explanation:
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I always enjoy reading your blog! Judy
Thanks, Judy! That is lovely. I am happy to participate.
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In pleasure, the thoughts dance gaily. In sorrow, everything become still and weighty. But, in sorrow life reveals the bliss more.
Since losing my mother 3 weeks ago, my mind has been so scattered, ” I walked a mile” has collected the fragments and put my true feelings into a few short words. In fact, I told my husband yesterday since her death, “I can see clearly now.” If only I had read this before she passed, it certainly hits home. I can’t go back but learn for the future.
Dear Carol, I am so sorry for your loss, and very grateful that you shared a bit of your story here. My thoughts are with you, and I love hearing that this poem reflects such deep experience for you.
Thank you Nina. I was her caregiver for many years, and now realize I could have had much more patience with her. Now I see more clearly, then caught in the midst of day to day life. Tough life lessons.
[…] 2. I Walked a Mile with Pleasure […]
Can someone please tell me which is the poem of the poet Robert Browning Hamilton….pleasure and sorrow,because i have a speech about this poem
Can someone please tell me which is the poem of the poet Robert Browning Hamilton….pleasure and sorrow,because i have a speech about this poem on monday at school…please help me
can someone explain or give a simple meaning to this poem ” i walked a mile with pleasure “,Please
It means when things are going well (with pleasure), you really don’t learn a lot about life; you just enjoy it. But when you suffer a loss, through your sorrow you examine your relationships (and life) much closer and how you may have altered your responses and appreciation of things you will no longer have. In other words things you took for granted will now be sorely missed.
Powerful, intense and absolute in a nutshell.
My feelings exactly Philip.
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If I so may share a beautiful quote:
“Let life be beautiful like summer flowers and death like autumn leaves.”
…..Rabindranath Tagore
I loved this poem, meant a lot to me
The title is “Along the road” . When I first read it I comited it to memory right then.
love this poem, but what is the meaning of it?
I came across this poem in one of my devotions today and searched the internet to see who its author was. It is so true. I am seventy two and have lost two husbands, a child, six siblings and my best friend. And through it all, through all the tears and pain, with every loss I have grown more compassionate, more loving, and stronger in my faith.
Thank you for sharing this with me, Sharon. Sorry I didn’t see it until now. Now I’m in a cafe and teary-eyed. Bless you.
[…] 2. I Walked a Mile with Pleasure […]
No words of comfort can deminish sorrow, but to walk with someone who is in sorrow, to hold a hand, is often all that is required. That silence, that just being there is comfort itself.
That is so true Peter, sharing sorrow can lighten it. Although in my case, I took the poem on a very personal level. It was a lesson taught, but too late. It opened my eyes to a place I cannot return.
I love this poem. It sums up exactly how I feel. Recently lost my mother and I’m so depressed. This pretty much is my mood. I’ve learned more than i need from Sorrow.
You feel exactly how I do Donna. How true learning more from Sorrow than you needed to. You are not alone dear. It does get easier in time, but always a thorn that cannot be released.
[…] 2. I Walked a Mile with Pleasure […]
[…] Robert Browning Hamilton […]
Simple words but highly profound.
[…] 1. I Walked a Mile with Pleasure […]