The Children's Hour

Between the dark and the daylight,
When the night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day's occupation,
That is know as the children's hour.

I hear in the chamber above me
The patter of little feet,
The sound of a door that is opened,
And voices soft and sweet.

From my study I see in the lamplight,
Descending the broad hall stair,
Grave Alice, and laughing Allegra,
And Edith with golden hair.

A whisper and then a silence:
Yet I know by their merry eyes,
They are plotting and planning together,
To take me by surprise.

A sudden rush from the stairway,
A sudden raid from the hall!
By three doors left unguarded
They enter my castle wall!

They climb up into my turret
O'er the arms and back of my chair;
If I try to escape, they surround me,
They seem to be everywhere.

They almost devour me with kisses,
Their arms about me entwine,
Till I think of the Bishop of Bingen
In his Mouse-Tower on the Rhine!

Do you think, O blue-eyed banditti,
Because you have scaled the wall,
Such an old mustache as I am
Is not a match for you all?

I have you fast in my fortress
And will not let you depart,
But put you down in the dungeon
In the round-tower of my heart.

And there will I keep you forever,
Yes, forever and a day,
Till the walls shall crumble to ruin,
And moulder in dust away!

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Vous avez aimé cette poésie ? faites la connaître !

Partager

Lien permanent The Children's Hour

Traduction(s) The Children's Hour (english page)

Mots-clefs :

D'autres poésies de Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The Bridge

I stood on the bridge at midnight,
As the clocks were...

lire la suite de la poésie : The Bridge
mots clefs :

The Belfrey of Bruges

In the market-place of Bruges stands the belfrey old and brown;...

lire la suite de la poésie : The Belfrey of Bruges
mots clefs :

The Arsenal at Springfield

This is the Arsenal. From floor to ceiling,
Like a huge...

lire la suite de la poésie : The Arsenal at Springfield
mots clefs :

The Arrow and the Song

I shot an arrow into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not...

lire la suite de la poésie : The Arrow and the Song
mots clefs :

Thangbrand the Priest

Short of stature, large of limb,
Burly face and russet...

lire la suite de la poésie : Thangbrand the Priest
mots clefs :

Tegner's Drapa

Heard a voice, that cried,
"Balder the Beautiful
Is...

lire la suite de la poésie : Tegner's Drapa
mots clefs :

Sunrise on the Hills

I stood upon the hills, when heaven's wide arch
Was...

lire la suite de la poésie : Sunrise on the Hills
mots clefs :

Sundown

The summer sun is sinking low;
Only the tree-tops redden...

lire la suite de la poésie : Sundown
mots clefs :

St. John's, Cambridge

I stand beneath the tree, whose branches shade
Thy western...

lire la suite de la poésie : St. John's, Cambridge
mots clefs :

Spirit of Poetry, The

There is a quiet spirit in these woods,
That dwells...

lire la suite de la poésie : Spirit of Poetry, The
mots clefs :

Précédentes poésies

Words of Comfort to Be Scratched on a Mirror

Helen of Troy had a wandering glance;
Sappho's restriction...

lire la suite de la poésie : Words of Comfort to Be Scratched on a Mirror
mots clefs :

Wisdom

This I say, and this I know:
Love has seen the last of...

lire la suite de la poésie : Wisdom
mots clefs :

Walter Savage Landor

Upon the work of Walter Landor
I am unfit to write with...

lire la suite de la poésie : Walter Savage Landor
mots clefs :

Wail

Love has gone a-rocketing.
That is not the worst;
I...

lire la suite de la poésie : Wail
mots clefs :

Victoria

Dear dead Victoria
Rotted cosily;
In excelsis...

lire la suite de la poésie : Victoria
mots clefs :