Fifteen years passed between the publication of Steeple Bush in 1947 and In the Clearing in 1962. Frost, now eighty-seven years old, had moved into the realm of national treasure and cultural icon. He continued to travel extensively as an advocate for America and poetry. In this collection, Frost plays the role of a teacher, providing biology lessons in “Pod of the Milkweed,” “Peril of Hope,” and “Our Doom to Bloom;” he displays an extensive knowledge of cosmology and physics in “A Never Naught Song” and wishes for extra moons in the light-hearted poem “A-Wishing Well.” In “Accidentally on Purpose,” Frost uses astronomy and the structure of the universe as a framework for discussing evolution. The poems capture Frost’s lifetime of accumulated knowledge of science, nature, and technology.