The above is the first stanza of Theodore Roethke’s beloved if ambiguous poem “The Waking.” It is a poem studied in classrooms, where a student might work hard to extract a graspable meaning ...

The new exhibit includes Roethke’s poem, “Big Wind,” historic advertisements, photos and a safe that would have been used in one of the floral company’s retail stores or offices.

Gallagher remembers calming young students during the Vietnam War era by promising to read them Roethke’s “Dirty Dinky” poem. It’s just one of many times, she said, when her experiences in ...