Life (priest and poet say) is but a dream;
I wish no happier one than to be laid
Beneath a cool syringa’s scented shade,
Or wavy willow, by the running stream,
Brimful of moral, where the dragon-fly,
Wanders as careless and content as I.
Thanks for this fancy, insect king,
Of purple crest and filmy wing,
Who with indifference givest up
The water-lily’s golden cup,
To come again and overlook
What I am writing in my book.
Believe me, most who read the line
Will read with hornier eyes than thine;
And yet their souls shall live for ever,
And thine drop dead into the river!
God pardon them, O insect king,
Who fancy so unjust a thing!
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Comments1I love how Walter Savage Landor uses the dragon-fly as a kinda metaphor for how he feels about life. The flow of the pome isn't too overhwelming and I can stillunderstand what he tries to say. Some lines really hit me in the heart andfor some reasons I feel kinda relaxed while reading, like the peoms a gentle river, not a rapid waterfall. Wish I could wrtie like this too.