The sun was bright, the leaves aglow
When I was young, long, long ago
When life did not pass in a bang and a flash
When time seemed a game- there was nothing too rash
To try. When fire burned without turning to ash-
Then I was at leisure. Ready and fresh
As the day. And I went
Looking for something: for some moist treasure
Or other, something proud, something free
Something that lived in a watery cave, rising
To my will, willing, guileful but unsurprising,
Sweet and modish.. Something that would be
Worth the seeking – a precise, pretty pleasure.
Pride I found. In plenty.
A proud mind, proud heart, above all, proud flesh,
Fine and fierce: -a wonder well beyond my wish
And to think. I went there looking for a dish
Of quite another kind. I did not hook my fish.
But all was well.- too well I know.
Now that the winds of old age blow.
I rather enjoyed this poem it reminded me of my youth..Thank you
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
Very beautifully done. The understatement makes me so envious. It reminds me of what Mark Twain said to Oscar Wilde