Poem for a sleeping child
Dave Collins 1953 (Springfield)
There’s a wish to wander in your cool innocence
and cruise the thoughttides of no
responsibility—so easily you wipe your
shoeless feet on the ever waiting door
mat of socialization. How can I help you keep your
tender "souls" intact—your tread from
wearing thin out of align so as not to
fall flat. Your easy grace put to an
unfair test of ill-will winds blowing
carelessly at your soft back. I long for your sweet
calm at rest so deep so empty filled with
solid happiness—you know you are loved
beyond any measure that’s human or infinite. If
I could walk with you for a moment and peek
quietly at your conscience-----but no-it's yours
and no Dooleys allowed. Forgive me to
want to intrude on your ever pleasant play-would you
share with me like the kernel of rice or
squashed raisin-I might, but only if we all
can go. Keep it hold it for as long as you
can-as it suddenly disappears without a trace
never to be found again lest you become your
own sondaughter and learn to bask on
the outside looking in—---and be content. I
will live to never intrude on your soulspace,
but will always knock first. I am sorry ahead
of time for any pain I cause—for my mat
was torn treaded , muddy and ragged—my
sleep had no wanting witness. But I promise
to watch over you all ways.
Dave Collins. Song, Poem for a sleeping child, music to write by, Kevin Ubanks. Best read if listening to the suggested music. Spring 1991.
About this poem
Written for my first son, 1 at the time, as I often watched him sleep once I would put him to bed. U must listen to the song same title, by Kevin Eubanks to get the full emo measure. He's now 31.
Font size:
Written on 1991
Submitted by klaatu on July 16, 2021
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:18 min read
- 12 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AXBBBXCXDXXXXXXCCBXCXBXEAXXEXX D |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,422 |
Words | 259 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 30, 1 |
Translation
Find a translation for this poem in other languages:
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Poem for a sleeping child" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 Oct. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/105119/poem-for-a-sleeping-child>.
Discuss the poem Poem for a sleeping child with the community...
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In