Abou Ben Adhem by James Henry Leigh Hunt

Abou Ben Adhem by James Henry Leigh Hunt

In elementary school, this poem was parsed for me by my teachers from about 1st to 3rd grade (as I recall). What I also recall was that the Islamic elements of the poem were repressed, making it difficult for me to understand. Not that I knew anything about Islam in elementary school, but I knew that I did not understand the poem's peculiar cultural flavor, much less its unusual religious perspective. And it seemed to me that my teachers avoided discussing these most intriguing and yet foreign elements of the poem. They wanted me to focus on the poem's message--probably because they themselves did not understand its religious perspective and cultural flavor. So I recall resenting the poem because it occasioned frustration in me. I think it was in third grade that I finally gave in and simply focused on the message: at which time the poem seemed like a revelation to me. Then I regretted not appreciating the poem sooner. It could have been taught better; but it is probably a wonder that it was taught at all.