At the age of sixteen, Milton first appeared before the public eye as a promising young poet. These early verses, written while he was a boy in school, indicate his brilliant future. Milton's Poems Vol. 4, pp. 7-18 I have a natural aversion to religious themes, which may be a partial explanation of my reluctance to read some of these classics. I have to keep reminding myself to read them within the framework of literature, not church. And I have to admit... Might as well do it now... I am not a great lover of poetry. I admire the talent and envy the creative gift. I would just rather be reading prose. But, I shall soldier on, as I know that this will not be the only reading assignment of poetry in this year-long project. This selection contains two poems written by Milton as a young student at Cambridge. The first is titled On the Morning of Christ's Nativity , written in 1629. And it is about exactly what the title promises, the crossing of the Atlantic by Columbus. J