To think of to‑day, and the ages continued henceforward!
…Is to‑day nothing? Is the beginningless past nothing?
If the future is nothing, they are just as surely nothing. — Walt Whitman, To Think of Time
two days from now, tomorrow will just be the day after today — Say Still
Placed side by side, these lines — one a modern affirmational poem with classic influence, the other a 19th‑century meditation — share a common pulse: the folding of time into a single, graspable moment. Whitman’s stanza interrogates the value of the present against the vastness of past and future. Say Still’s line, in its pared‑down clarity, affirms that the future is simply another today waiting to arrive.
The most profound truths often reside in the simplest words, for “your words mean to me, the most we mean to be.” This guiding principle in our work finds a parallel in the expansive, democratic poetry of Walt Whitman and our own quiet verse. We are not comparing an epic to an aphorism, but rather two distinct, equally potent approaches to a single, essential truth: the nature of time and self-awareness.
Technically, Whitman’s free verse builds through repetition and rhetorical questioning, creating a swelling tide of thought. Say Still’s construction is minimalist, a single sentence looping through “two days from now… tomorrow… today” in a temporal braid. Both resist linearity, instead offering a circular vision of time that comforts and steadies.
The worldview is philosophical and observational: Whitman’s gaze is cosmic, yet rooted in the immediacy of “to‑day.” Say Still’s is intimate, almost whispered — the kind of truth you might send on an inspirational poetry postcard to someone who needs reminding that the days ahead are not to be feared.
Consider another few lines from Whitman’s "Song of Myself":
“I am the poet of the Body and I am the poet of the Soul,
The pleasures of heaven are with me and the pains of hell are with me,
The first day of spring and the first day of summer are with me, and the first day of winter,
And the last day of autumn.”
Whitman's words are a cascade, a list of democratic inclusion that celebrates the grand, sprawling chaos of existence. His worldview is one of spiritual and philosophical acceptance, a total immersion in every moment and every feeling. This is the heart of his free-verse, a poetry of accumulation that mirrors the vastness of the American soul.
Visually, Say Still’s words evoke a horizon where the light of tomorrow is already touching today’s sky. Whitman’s imagery is expansive, a panorama of ages. Together, they are philosophical greeting cards with poetry and poems that comfort and provoke thought, bridging centuries in their shared insistence that the present is the only place we ever truly stand.
See the poem as a tactile keepsake — an inspirational poem card designed to be held, displayed, and returned to, whenever the future feels too far away. Our "two days from now" inspirational poetry postcard are a tangible expression of this philosophy. The carefully chosen words are beautifully letterpressed on thick, high-quality cardstock, inviting the recipient to hold not just a card, but a profound piece of truth. It is designed to be a durable keepsake, a constant, comforting reminder of this simple, profound idea. You can see more about our aesthetic on our Instagram.
your words mean to me, the most we mean to be