--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What shall I give? and which are my…" description: "\"“What shall I give? and which are my miracles? 2. Realism is mine--my miracles--Take freely, Take without end--I offer them to you wherever your feet c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bd/walt-whitman-265_light-and-dark_what-shall-i-give-and-which-are-my-mirac_1310659.jpg" --- # What shall I give? and which are my miracles? 2. Realism… ![“What shall I give? and which are my miracles? 2. Realism is mine--my miracles--Take freely, Take without end--I offer them to you wherever your feet can carry you or your eyes reach. 3. Why! who makes much of a miracle? As to me, I know of nothing else but miracles, Whether I walk the streets of…” quote by Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bd/walt-whitman-265_light-and-dark_what-shall-i-give-and-which-are-my-mirac_1310659.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bd/walt-whitman-265_light-and-dark_what-shall-i-give-and-which-are-my-mirac_1310659.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bd/walt-whitman-265_light-and-dark_what-shall-i-give-and-which-are-my-mirac_1310659.jpg) > ““What shall I give? and which are my miracles? 2. Realism is mine--my miracles--Take freely, Take without end--I offer them to you wherever your feet can carry you or your eyes reach. 3. Why! who makes much of a miracle? As to me, I know of nothing else but miracles, Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan, Or dart my sight over the roofs of houses toward the sky, Or wade with naked feet along the beach, just in the edge of the water, Or stand under trees in the woods, Or talk by day with any one I love--or sleep in the bed at night with any one I love, Or sit at the table at dinner with my mother, Or look at strangers opposite me riding in the car, Or watch honey-bees busy around the hive, of a summer forenoon, Or animals feeding in the fields, Or birds--or the wonderfulness of insects in the air, Or the wonderfulness of the sundown--or of stars shining so quiet and bright, Or the exquisite, delicate, thin curve of the new moon in spring; Or whether I go among those I like best, and that like me best--mechanics, boatmen, farmers, Or among the savans--or to the \_soiree\_--or to the opera. Or stand a long while looking at the movements of machinery, Or behold children at their sports, Or the admirable sight of the perfect old man, or the perfect old woman, Or the sick in hospitals, or the dead carried to burial, Or my own eyes and figure in the glass; These, with the rest, one and all, are to me miracles, The whole referring--yet each distinct and in its place. 4. To me, every hour of the light and dark is a miracle, Every inch of space is a miracle, Every square yard of the surface of the earth is spread with the same, Every cubic foot of the interior swarms with the same; Every spear of grass--the frames, limbs, organs, of men and women, and all that concerns them, All these to me are unspeakably perfect miracles. To me the sea is a continual miracle; The fishes that swim--the rocks--the motion of the waves--the ships, with men in them, What stranger miracles are there?”” [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poet sees miracles in every ordinary detail of life, viewing the world as a continuous series of perfect, wondrous moments. **In simple terms:** Every small thing is a miracle. Key Takeaway Notice wonder in daily life. Themes nature mindfulness gratitude perception spirituality Mood reverent reflective Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - walking in city - watching nature - interacting with loved ones - observing work - contemplating death Key Concepts Phenomenology transcendence holism Questions to Reflect On - How can you find awe in routine tasks? - What ordinary moments feel miraculous to you? A Different Perspective Miracles may feel overwhelming if one expects grand events only. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Light and dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light-and-dark/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Miracles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracles/) [New moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-moon/) [Old man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-man/) ## Related quotes > [“(I know, it's a poem but oh well). Why! who makes much of a miracle? As to me, I know of nothing else but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-know-it-s-a-poem-but-oh-well-why-who-makes-much-of-a-miracle-as-to/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Why who makes much of a miracle? As to me I know nothing else but miracles, whether they be animals feeding in the fields,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/why-who-makes-much-of-a-miracle-as-to-me-i-know-nothing-else-but/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [As for me, I know nothing else but miracles, Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan, Or dart my sight over the roofs of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/as-for-me-i-know-nothing-else-but-miracles-whether-i-walk-the-streets/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [To me, every hour of the light and dark is a miracle. Every cubic inch of space is a miracle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/to-me-every-hour-of-the-light-and-dark-is-a-miracle-every-cubic-inch/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Every moment of light and dark is a miracle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/every-moment-of-light-and-dark-is-a-miracle/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“If the wind will not serve, take to the oars. To me, every hour of the light and dark is a miracle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/if-the-wind-will-not-serve-take-to-the-oars-to-me-every-hour-of-the/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [To me, every hour of the light and dark is a miracle, every inch of space is a miracle, every square yard of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/to-me-every-hour-of-the-light-and-dark-is-a-miracle-every-inch-of/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bible/let-no-one-judge-you-in-food-or-in-drink-or-regarding-a-festival-or-a/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bible/) > [“A new moon teaches gradualness and deliberation and how one gives birth to oneself slowly. Patience with small details makes perfect a large work,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/a-new-moon-teaches-gradualness-and-deliberation-and-how-one-gives/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“It was the new moon that Veronika loved best because there was still room for it to grow, to expand, to fill the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-was-the-new-moon-that-veronika-loved-best-because-there-was-still/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Whom would you like to put throught a table next? The entire cast of New Moon. They're trying to portray vampires, but they look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheamus/whom-would-you-like-to-put-throught-a-table-next-the-entire-cast-of/) [Sheamus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheamus/) > [The Pain Is My Only Reminder He Was Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-swan/the-pain-is-my-only-reminder-he-was-real/) Bella Swan > [“You come all flowers & new moon, quick to wrap me in your pent-up tides, in your stormy clouds, in your confused fragrances which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dulce-mar-a-loyn-z/you-come-all-flowers-new-moon-quick-to-wrap-me-in-your-pent-up-tides/) Dulce María Loynáz > [There was a different ending to New Moon originally. It was a much quieter book. It was very much all in Bellas head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/there-was-a-different-ending-to-new-moon-originally-it-was-a-much/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) > [It was a realization for me when Oprah was talking about New Moon. I was like, "Oh, my god, she's watched a movie that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tinsel-korey/it-was-a-realization-for-me-when-oprah-was-talking-about-new-moon-i/) [Tinsel Korey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tinsel-korey/) ## More by Walt Whitman > [O lands! O all so dear to me - what you are, I become part of that, whatever it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/o-lands-o-all-so-dear-to-me-what-you-are-i-become-part-of-that/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“Each of us inevitable, Each of us limitless—each of us with his or her right upon the earth, Each of us allow'd the eternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/each-of-us-inevitable-each-of-us-limitless-each-of-us-with-his-or-her/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Comerado, this is no book,Who touches this, touches a man,(Is it night? Are we here alone?)It is I you hold, and who holds you,I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/comerado-this-is-no-book-who-touches-this-touches-a-man-is-it-night/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [I have sometimes thought that the laws ought not to punish those actions of evil which are committed when the senses are steeped in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-have-sometimes-thought-that-the-laws-ought-not-to-punish-those/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Oh while I live, to be the ruler of life, not a slave, to meet life as a powerful conqueror, and nothing exterior to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/oh-while-i-live-to-be-the-ruler-of-life-not-a-slave-to-meet-life-as-a/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“it makes such difference where you read”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/it-makes-such-difference-where-you-read/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Wisdom is not finally tested in the schools, Wisdom cannot be pass'd from one having it to another not having it, Wisdom is of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/wisdom-is-not-finally-tested-in-the-schools-wisdom-cannot-be-pass-d/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Strange, (is it not?) that battles, martyrs, blood, even assassination should so condense - perhaps only really lastingly condense - a Nationality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/strange-is-it-not-that-battles-martyrs-blood-even-assassination/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [I think I could always live with animals. The more you're around people, the more you love animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-think-i-could-always-live-with-animals-the-more-you-re-around/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“I am the poet of the Body and I am the poet of the Soul, The pleasures of heaven are with me and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-am-the-poet-of-the-body-and-i-am-the-poet-of-the-soul-the-pleasures/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [So here I sit in the early candle-light of old age-I and my book-casting backward glances over out travel'd road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/so-here-i-sit-in-the-early-candle-light-of-old-age-i-and-my-book/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Re-examine all you have been told. Dismiss what insults your soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/re-examine-all-you-have-been-told-dismiss-what-insults-your-soul/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [This is what you shall do: love the earth and sun, and animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/this-is-what-you-shall-do-love-the-earth-and-sun-and-animals-despise/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Each of us inevitable; Each of us limitless-each of us with his or her right upon the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/each-of-us-inevitable-each-of-us-limitless-each-of-us-with-his-or-her-2/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Silence? What can New York-noisy, roaring, rumbling, tumbling, bustling, story, turbulent New York-have to do with silence? Amid the universal clatter, the incessant din…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/silence-what-can-new-york-noisy-roaring-rumbling-tumbling-bustling/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) [Explore all 775 Walt Whitman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) ## More Light and dark quotes > [I even see the cinema itself as a woman, with its alternation of light and darkness, of appearing and disappearing images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/i-even-see-the-cinema-itself-as-a-woman-with-its-alternation-of-light/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > [“The world can spare psychopathic masterminds of fear, pushing the panic button all along. Instead, let us look at the unfettering light that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/the-world-can-spare-psychopathic-masterminds-of-fear-pushing-the/) [Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/) > [“The glue that holds the natural world together appears to be a harmonious balance of opposites: day and night, light and dark, winter and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-glue-that-holds-the-natural-world-together-appears-to-be-a/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Be calm, be strong, be grateful, and become a lamp full of light, that the darkness of sorrows be annihilated, and that the sun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdu-l-bah/be-calm-be-strong-be-grateful-and-become-a-lamp-full-of-light-that/) [Abdu'l-Bahá](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdu-l-bah/) > [There will be three cats, kin of your kin, with the power of the stars in their paws. They will find a fourth, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-will-be-three-cats-kin-of-your-kin-with-the-power-of-the-stars/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We all walk in the dark and each of us must learn to turn on his or her own light.\[so we can see the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/we-all-walk-in-the-dark-and-each-of-us-must-learn-to-turn-on-his-or/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [If I could change anything about Garden State, it would be to cast somebody else for the female lead. Natalie just isn't really that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/if-i-could-change-anything-about-garden-state-it-would-be-to-cast/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [Once you conquer your selfish self, all your darkness will change to light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/once-you-conquer-your-selfish-self-all-your-darkness-will-change-to/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [If there is always light, you don’t experience light anymore. You have to have the rhythm of light and darkness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/if-there-is-always-light-you-don-t-experience-light-anymore-you-have/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [The chief concern of the French Impressionists was the discovery of balance between light and dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-gardiner/the-chief-concern-of-the-french-impressionists-was-the-discovery-of/) [Stephen Gardiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-gardiner/) > [“Mappo frowned. 'I have not heard that phrase before. Lost Elementals?' 'Scholars tend to acknowledge but four, generally: water, fire, earth and air; yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/mappo-frowned-i-have-not-heard-that-phrase-before-lost-elementals/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [The place where light and dark begin to touch is where miracles arise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-johnson/the-place-where-light-and-dark-begin-to-touch-is-where-miracles-arise/) [Robert A. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-johnson/) > [Four wings, two hearts, but only one soul. They connect in the middle, but are separated by a thin line of ash. Its what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-sorensen/four-wings-two-hearts-but-only-one-soul-they-connect-in-the-middle/) [Jessica Sorensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-sorensen/) > [Find beauty not only in the thing itself but in the pattern of the shadows, the light and dark which that thing provides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junichiro-tanizaki/find-beauty-not-only-in-the-thing-itself-but-in-the-pattern-of-the/) [Junichiro Tanizaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junichiro-tanizaki/) > [I'm interested in creating a space through color contrasts, rather than by simple shadows of light and dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-macke/i-m-interested-in-creating-a-space-through-color-contrasts-rather/) August Macke [Browse all 214 Light and dark quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light-and-dark/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“What shall I give? and which are my miracles? 2. Realism is mine--my miracles--Take freely, Take without end--I offer them to you wherever your feet can carry you or your eyes reach. 3. Why! who makes much of a miracle? As to me, I know of nothing else but miracles, Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan, Or dart my sight over the roofs of houses toward the sky, Or wade with naked feet along the beach, just in the edge of the water, Or stand under trees in the woods, Or talk by day with any one I love--or sleep in the bed at night with any one I love, Or sit at the table at dinner with my mother, Or look at strangers opposite me riding in the car, Or watch honey-bees busy around the hive, of a summer forenoon, Or animals feeding in the fields, Or birds--or the wonderfulness of insects in the air, Or the wonderfulness of the sundown--or of stars shining so quiet and bright, Or the exquisite, delicate, thin curve of the new moon in spring; Or whether I go among those I like best, and that like me best--mechanics, boatmen, farmers, Or among the savans--or to the _soiree_--or to the opera. Or stand a long while looking at the movements of machinery, Or behold children at their sports, Or the admirable sight of the perfect old man, or the perfect old woman, Or the sick in hospitals, or the dead carried to burial, Or my own eyes and figure in the glass; These, with the rest, one and all, are to me miracles, The whole referring--yet each distinct and in its place. 4. To me, every hour of the light and dark is a miracle, Every inch of space is a miracle, Every square yard of the surface of the earth is spread with the same, Every cubic foot of the interior swarms with the same; Every spear of grass--the frames, limbs, organs, of men and women, and all that concerns them, All these to me are unspeakably perfect miracles. 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