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Classic and Contemporary Poetry


DREAMS by WALTER JOHN DE LA MARE

Poet Analysis

First Line: BE GENTLE, O HANDS OF A CHILD
Last Line: RETURN AGAIN, COME!'

Be gentle, O hands of a child;
Be true: like a shadowy sea
In the starry darkness of night
Are your eyes to me.

But words are shallow, and soon
Dreams fade that the heart once knew;
And youth fades out in the mind,
In the dark eyes too.

What can a tired heart say,
Which the wise of the world have made dumb?
Save to the lonely dreams of a child,
'Return again, come!'



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