Death is a casual countryman

Charles Olson was born in 1910 and died at the age of 60 in 1970. Olson would be categorized with the black mountain poets. This group of poets began with a school for the arts known as black mountain college. This institution was only open for 23 years and enrolled fewer than 1200 students. Charles Olson actually introduced an open field poetry form, in which each line could be read in one breath and phrase.
The most intriguing poem of Olson's to me was "Cole's island"
Link for your viewing pleasure here
If read correctly you can see how his poem lines up with the style characteristic of the group and time period after.
The meaning of this poem also makes me think. Olson is implying that this man walking near him as if he is just minding his own business, is death. So casually does death stroll past without giving any more acknowledgment to Olson's character than a mere head nod. In life this becomes apparent also. death seems to stroll among us as if he owns the "island" we populate. This is brilliant. Olson is a very creatively accurate poet from the black mountain college.