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Classic and Contemporary Poetry


TREES by WILLIAM HENRY DAVIES

Poet Analysis

First Line: THEY ASK ME WHERE THE TEMPLE STANDS
Last Line: I'D LIVE AS LONG AS THIS GREEN TREE.
Subject(s): TREES;

THEY ask me where the Temple stands,
And is the Abbey far from there;
They ask the way to old St. Paul's,
And where they'll find Trafalgar Square.

As I pass on with my one thought
To find a quiet place with trees,
I answer him, I answer her,
I answer one and all of these.

When I sit under a green tree,
Silent, and breathing all the while
As easy as a sleeping child,
And smiling with as soft a smile --

Then, as my brains begin to work,
This is the thought that comes to me:
Were such a peace more often mine,
I'd live as long as this green tree.



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