Nature by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend May 1, 2016   Nature   Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

As a fond mother, when the day is o'er,    Leads by the hand her little child to bed,    Half willing, half reluctant to be led,    And leave his broken playthings on the floor, Still gazing at them through the open door,    Nor wholly reassured and comforted    By promises of others in their stead,    Which, though more splendid, may not please him more; So Nature deals with us, and takes away    Our playthings one by one, and by the hand    Leads us to rest so gently, that we go Scarce knowing if we wish to go or stay,    Being too full of sleep to understand    How far the unknown transcends the what we know.            This poem is in the public domain. About This Poem   “Nature” was published in Kéramos and Other Poems (Houghton, Osgood & Company, 1878).   Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine, on February 27, 1807. His books include Voices of the Night (John Owen, 1839) and the book-length poem Evangeline (William D. Ticknor & Company). He died on March 24, 1882. Poetry by Longfellow   Poems and Other Writings (Library of America, 2000) "Moreover, the Moon—" by Mina Loy "Among the Hills: Prelude [excerpt]" by John Greenleaf Whittier "Sonnet—Mutation" by William Cullen Bryant Poem-a-Day   Launched during National Poetry Month in 2006, Poem-a-Day features new and previously unpublished poems by contemporary poets on weekdays and classic poems on weekends. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038