A child,
Curious and innocent,
Slips from his Nurse, and rejoicing
Loses himself in the Fair.
Thro’ the jostle and din
Wandering, he revels,
Dreaming, desiring, possessing;
Till, of a sudden
Tired and afraid, he beholds
The sordid assemblage
Just as it is; and he runs
With a sob to his Nurse
(Lighting at last on him),
And in her motherly bosom
Cries him to sleep.
Thus thro’ the World,
Seeing and feeling and knowing,
Goes Man: till at last,
Tired of experience, he turns
To the friendly and comforting breast
Of the old nurse, Death.
(William Ernest Henley)
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Based on Topics: Man Poems, World Poems, Death & Dying Poems, Fairness Poems, Sleep Poems, Hospitality Poems, Dreaming Poems, Nurses Poems, Experience PoemsBased on Keywords: assemblage