Inspiration
You're searching for a quiet spot
To sit, and have a little thought.
A place unhaunted by the fears
Of daily cares and passing years.
A place untroubled by the beat
And aimless rush of many feet.
You want a grassy corner where,
Untroubled by the mocking stare,
Of those who do not understand
You'll take a pen into your hand.
Take pen, and write a simple song
To pass unnoticed by the throng.
But then, someday when you are dead,
And granite molders at your head,
A careworn soul will read your lay
Of starry night and sunny day
And find the courage to depart
The beaten paths, and make a start
Upon the peaceful, grassy way
Where only kindred feet will stray.
At length to seek a weathered stone -
A grassy tomb, at peace, alone -
And say, (perhaps with grateful tear),
'My friend, your song has brought me here.'
To sit, and have a little thought.
A place unhaunted by the fears
Of daily cares and passing years.
A place untroubled by the beat
And aimless rush of many feet.
You want a grassy corner where,
Untroubled by the mocking stare,
Of those who do not understand
You'll take a pen into your hand.
Take pen, and write a simple song
To pass unnoticed by the throng.
But then, someday when you are dead,
And granite molders at your head,
A careworn soul will read your lay
Of starry night and sunny day
And find the courage to depart
The beaten paths, and make a start
Upon the peaceful, grassy way
Where only kindred feet will stray.
At length to seek a weathered stone -
A grassy tomb, at peace, alone -
And say, (perhaps with grateful tear),
'My friend, your song has brought me here.'
I love the second half; the first, not as much, though I'm not sure why. Perhaps the first lines felt a little more plodding and predictable, whereas the second were more effortlessly lyrical. A difference in the sorts of words chosen, I think. Part 1 has all the rhythm and rhyme of Part 2, but less of a sense of rarer words used in new ways. (I hope that came across halfway clear...)
ReplyDeleteMy favorite lines:
"A careworn soul will read your lay..."
"Where only kindred feet will stray..."
And the sweet triumph of the end -- " 'My friend, your song has brought me here.' "
Yes, I think I worked harder on the first bit...and it shows a little too much. The second part just flowed out.
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