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Keep me from going to sleep too soon
Or if I go to sleep too soon
Come wake me up. Come any hour
Of night. Come whistling up the road.
Stomp on the porch. Bang on the door.
Make me get out of bed and come
And let you in and light a light.
Tell me the northern lights are on
And make me look. Or tell me clouds
Are doing something to the moon
They never did before, and show me.
See that I see. Talk to me till
I'm half as wide awake as you
And start to dress wondering why
I ever went to bed at all.
Tell me the walking is superb.
Not only tell me but persuade me.
You know I'm not too hard persuaded.
Robert Francis
Read poems about / on: sleep, moon, light, night
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Click here to write your comments about this poem (Summons by Robert Francis)
Susan Folkes (7/9/2008 11:17:00 AM)
I'm with Zack - sort of - I think it's being in love with life. It reminds me of a time in Manila when the meteorite shower went on from about 2: 00 am until 5: 00 am. My friend and I had gone to bed, having had a good evening out and feeling tired. We had decided not to join our friends on the top of a skyscraper to watch the promised spectacle. One of our friends came bashing on the door at 1: 00 am until we woke up and we dressed and travelled to the top of the tower to watch. We lay on our backs watching the cosmic fireworks until morning. A night never forgotten, and shared with friends. It's a message not to take life for granted, a desire to share special moments. |
Kiarra Smith (6/13/2007 5:58:00 PM)
At Missouri Fine Arts Academy, we tried to analyze this poem. To me, it should be read in an almost mystical way with a soft voice. Though it sounds like death, I personally think it is about inspiration. The sleeping person is ignoring creativity and the beauty of life, yet wants to experience it. That is why the narrator is asking 'Persuade me'. This is shown throughout the poem by the things the narrator wants to see such as the beautiful aurora borealis. They tell them to 'Knock on the porch. Bang on the door' meaning to force them to listen even if they have to shout, 'Look! Look at all of the wonder you are missing! ' They want to see these things before they become a prisoner of their own negativity which is proven in the line 'Keep me from going to sleep too soon.' Of course, this is just my opinion. At the age of 17 now, it could change when I'm 20 or 30. |
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