Robert E. O'Connor, RIP

Bob O'Connor, Pittsburgh's 61-year-old mayor, was buried today. He had run for that office since 1997, finally winning last year, and he was sworn in as mayor on January 3, 2006. He was diagnosed with primary central nervous system lymphoma on July 10th. 53 days later, September 1st, he was dead.

Dirge in Woods

A wind sways the pines,
            And below
Not a breath of wild air;
Still as the mosses that glow
On the flooring and over the lines
Of the roots here and there.
The pine-tree drops its dead;
They are quiet, as under the sea.
Overhead, overhead
Rushes life in a race,
As the clouds the clouds chase;
            And we go,
And we drop like the fruits of the tree,
            Even we,
            Even so.

George Meredith (1828-1909)

The Oxford Book of Victorian Verse (1913) # 333; The Oxford Book of English Verse (1940) # 787.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Thu. 09/07/06 06:14:03 PM
Categorized as Literary.