GOOD old mother Fairie, Sitting by your fire, Have you any little folk You would like to hire? I want no chubby drudges To milk, and churn, and spin, Nor old and wrinkled Brownies, With grisly beards, and thin: But patient little people, With hands of busy care, And gentle speech, and loving hearts; Say, have you such to spare? I know a poor, pale body, Who cannot sleep at night, And I want the little people To keep her chamber bright; To chase away the shadows That make her moan and weep, To sing her loving lullabies, And kiss her eyes asleep. And when in dreams she reaches For pleasures dead and gone, To hold her wasted fingers, And make the rings stay on. They must be very cunning To make the future shine Like leaves, and flowers, and strawberries, A-growing on one vine. Good old mother Fairie, Since my need you know, Tell me, have you any folk Wise enough to go? | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...IN HOSPITAL: 3. INTERIOR by WILLIAM ERNEST HENLEY WINTER SONG by LUDWIG HENRICH CHRISTOPH HOLTY THE EARL O' QUARTERDECK by GEORGE MACDONALD A PAUSE by CHRISTINA GEORGINA ROSSETTI THE BIRD WITH THE COPPERY, KEEN CLAWS by WALLACE STEVENS SONG OF THE ENGINE by ALEXANDER ANDERSON |