O gift of God! O perfect day:
Whereon shall no man work, but play;
Whereon it is enough for me,
Not to be doing, but to be!
Through every fibre of my brain,
Through every nerve, through every vein,
I feel the electric thrill, the touch
Of life, that seems almost too much.
I hear the wind among the trees
Playing celestial symphonies;
I see the branches downward bent,
Like keys of some great instrument.
And over me unrolls on high
The splendid scenery of the sky,
Where through a sapphire sea the sun
Sails like a golden galleon,
Towards yonder cloud-land in the West,
Towards yonder Islands of the Blest,
Whose steep sierra far uplifts
Its craggy summits white with drifts.
Blow, winds! and waft through all the rooms
The snow-flakes of the cherry-blooms!
Blow, winds! and bend within my reach
The fiery blossoms of the peach!
O Life and Love! O happy throng
Of thoughts, whose only speech is song!
O heart of man! canst thou not be
Blithe as the air is, and as free?
:: “A Day of Sunshine,” written by Longfellow and much loved by us ::
(My daughter memorized this one last term. You’ll see it listed on our Memory Work Index.)
12 comments
So lovely. I haven't heard this one. My kids will be happy to move to Longfellow as they've found Tennyson to often be a downer.
It really is a beautiful poem. My daughter sighed with delight when I first read it and proclaimed it "hers!" LOL (They choose their own poems to memorize each term, usually different ones.)
I just love that your daughter claimed this one! It's a beauty indeed. Our Wednesday has shaped up to be a rather sunny day. Hope you're enjoying the gifts of God!
Just love this!
Oh, we are, Kortney! It has been beautiful here this week. 🙂
Thanks, Amy! This one and Hiawatha were the big winners from our journey with Longfellow this past term 🙂
An absolutely beautiful poem! I haven't come across that one yet. I love how you coupled it with the photos too.
The scene I *really* wanted to couple this poem with was from a couple months ago: we were at the park on a breezy day and the trees were raining down blossoms into our hair, mouths, everywhere! And Gianna squealed, "It's *just* like my poem!!" Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me for that one. 🙂
Still so beautiful.
I didn't know this on either, Celeste. Inspiring! X
This one runs through my mind on beautiful days such as those we have been having lately. I'm so glad my daughter chose it for memorization so that all of us can appreciate it. 🙂
Thank you, Dawn!