Leisure
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass.
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
by William H. Davies: “Songs of Joy and Others” (1911)
William Henry Davies, also known as W. H. Davies, was born on 3 July 1871 in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales. He spent much of his life as a vagabond and itinerant worker in Great Britain and the United States of America, until an injury involving a train caused him to lose his right foot. From that time on, disability forced him to rely on a wooden leg, leaving him unable to continue his wandering lifestyle. He settled into shelters for the indigent, and began writing prose and poetry. Eventually, he became a published author and was able to circulate among literary society. He was married to Helen Payne in 1923. William Henry Davies passed on at 69 years of age on 26 September 1940 in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England.
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass.
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
by William H. Davies: “Songs of Joy and Others” (1911)
William Henry Davies, also known as W. H. Davies, was born on 3 July 1871 in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales. He spent much of his life as a vagabond and itinerant worker in Great Britain and the United States of America, until an injury involving a train caused him to lose his right foot. From that time on, disability forced him to rely on a wooden leg, leaving him unable to continue his wandering lifestyle. He settled into shelters for the indigent, and began writing prose and poetry. Eventually, he became a published author and was able to circulate among literary society. He was married to Helen Payne in 1923. William Henry Davies passed on at 69 years of age on 26 September 1940 in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England.
