SING, for with hands, One thumb and four fingers a-piece, They built the temples of Egypt and Greece! Sing, for in many lands Are things of use and beauty seen, That without hands had never been Without skilled hands! White hands, deft hands, No lily is more lovely, no Nor can the swan more graces show Than lady's arm commands! O strength as of a giant's grip! O firmness meet to steer a ship! O swart, male hands! Frank hands, free hands, When shall my little ones grow great And clasp such huge ones for their mate? Who thinks, who understands, How hands of soldiers and of kings, And all those by princesses waved, Were once a baby's hands, and craved For jangling toys and shining things? | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE DARKEST HOUR; OXFORD, 1917 by GEORGE SANTAYANA THE POWER OF ART by GEORGE SANTAYANA THE BUOY-BELL by CHARLES TENNYSON TURNER FAREWELL TO CYNTHIA by FRANKLIN PIERCE ADAMS DRINKING SONG (2) by ALCAEUS OF MYTILENE I CLEANED MY HOUSE TODAY by KATHARINE CANBY BALDERSTON ON THE VIRGINITY OF THE VIRGIN MARY AND JOHANNA SOUTHCOTT by WILLIAM BLAKE |