A Child's Garden Poem by Rudyard Kipling
A Child's Garden
R. L. Stevenson
Now there is nothing wrong with me
Except -- I think it's called T.B.
And that is why I have to lay
Out in the garden all the day.
Our garden is not very wide
And cars go by on either side,
And make an angry-hooty noise
That rather startles little boys.
But worst of all is when they take
Me out in cars that growl and shake,
With charabancs so dreadful-near
I have to shut my eyes for fear.
But when I'm on my back again,
I watch the Croydon aeroplane
That flies across to France, and sings
Like hitting thick piano-strings.
When I am strong enough to do
The things I'm truly wishful to,
I'll never use a car or train
But always have an aeroplane;
And just go zooming round and round,
And frighten Nursey with the sound,
And see the angel-side of clouds,
And spit on all those motor-crowds!
Such an emotional poem. Such happen to children who die at a very early age, as they suffer from deadly diseases like T.B., cancer etc. All their dreams remain unfulfilled.... So sad!
But when I'm on my back again, I watch the Croydon aeroplane That flies across to France, and sings Like hitting thick piano-strings. Making it lively with examples. tony
Written beautifully. A tribute to Stevenson's " A Child's Garden of Verse" .
The late great Roald Dahl must surely have read this and been influenced by it.
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
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12/6/2024 3:41:40 AM # 1.0.0
Exactly why Kipling was a master! What a wonderful poem, written in the mind of a child - who wishes to impishly scare nursey with the sound of his imaginary airplane - which he would probably never grow old enough to fly. I can not think of a more lovely, quaint, yet emotionally sad backdrop for a poem...... Absolutely wonderful. On the outskirts of the county I grew up in is a turn of the 20th century building - beautiful - though now abandoned. During the early part of the 20th century it served as our Tuberculosis hospital. TB was looked upon as contagious as Ebola might be today, and any child contracting the disease had a great likelihood of dying from it.
Well said, for the layman and the dreamer both.........
Oh dear..... Why did the children contracting T.B. had a great likelihood of dying from it? Could not they survive at all?
I love your comment. I agree it is said from a child's point of view. This poem made me quite emotional. It shows just how much the poet empathizes and