Wednesday 4 March 2015

The Lake Isle of Inisfree

I will arise and go now, and go to Inisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight's all a-glimmer, and noon a purple glow,

And evening full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day

I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,

I hear it in the deep heart's core.

-- William Butler Yeats.

1 comment:

Sarah R said...

I first came across this poem as a sung version by Kate Burke and Ruth Hazelton (http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/kateburkeandruthhazleton4) and I've had it printed out on the wall in various city offices ever since. And now I'm living in the country with my own bee-loud garden, though I've yet to plant any bean rows ...