Milton's birthday

Today is the 400th anniversary of the birth of one of the greatest English poets, John Milton (December 9, 1608 — November 8, 1674). I would have loved to take a Milton course in University but I didn't need the extra credits since I was about to graduate...Maybe some day I'll go back...till then I should just start reading Paradise Lost "for starters...yeah right"... I would have loved to have taken a Milton course with my U of O Shakespeare professor (who loved to quote Milton....) but unfortunately that professor passed away before I had even completed my course with him (and had to finish the year with a grad student)... So, even if I hadn't graduated I wouldn't have been able to enjoy hearing him lecture! Time to read some Milton.... Ever read any Gerard Manley Hopkins poems? I really like them! I only learned to like poetry after discovering his work...