Every November, the searches for Stanley Horowitz on Google gain momentum. Horowitz, a poet, published a tranquil 18 word poem in the November 1983 issue of Reader’s Digest magazine, page 109. Some years later the poem was posted to a list of autumn quotations on the Internet, sandwiched between poetry giants like John Keats and Robert Frost, and it has been used ubiquitously all over the web ever since. 

jenny-pics on flickrWinter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all. — Stanley Horowitz 

As one of my regular patrons, Horowitz was interested to know how many websites his poem is quoted on. A search of his name and the first line of the poem retrieved around 1,630,000 results. His lines about the seasons are being used in many interesting ways, from grief counseling to public parks, from a legislative seat to a Philippine newspaper, and by many other locations across the world. Most call the words “inspirational.”Moorish Garden

His poem has been illustrated with images on Flickr (to the left is one by photographer Jenny Downing), as a starting point for fall fashion blogs, and are certainly on the minds of many lunching in Bryant Park on a crisp November day. He has even been quoted in a book titled 365 Prescriptions for the Soul by Dr. Bernie S. Siegel. All are unaware that the man who has touched them with his words of beauty is across the street on the third floor of Mid-Manhattan Library, looking up paintings in books to inspire his new project — an entire book of poems about the seasons. For all of those websites that don't really know who or where the quote came from — Horowitz is here in New York. Look for him at the Library.

Well, Horowitz, now you can expect a return of 1,630,001 results. And thank you for letting me inspire others with your poem.