When at home alone I sit
And am very tired of it,
I have just to shut my eyes
To go sailing through the skies—
(5) To go sailing far away
To the pleasant Land of Play;
To the fairy land afar
Where the Little People are;
Where the clover-tops are trees,
(10) And the rain-pools are the seas,
And the leaves like little ships
Sail about on tiny trips;
And above the daisy tree
Through the grasses,
(15) High overhead the Bumble Bee
Hums and passes.
In that forest to and fro I can wander, I can go;
See the spider and the fly,
And the ants go marching by
(20) Carrying parcels with their feet
Down the green and grassy street
I can in the sorrel sit
Where the ladybird alit.
I can climb the jointed grass; and on high
(25) See the greater swallows pass
In the sky,
And the round sun rolling by
Heeding no such thing as I.
Through the forest I can pass
(30) Till, as in a looking glass,
Humming fly and daisy tree
And my tiny self I see,
Painted very clear and neat
On the rain-pool at my feet.
(35) Should a leaflet come to land
Drifting near to where I stand,
Straight I’ll board that tiny boat
Round the rain-pool sea to float.
Little thoughtful creatures sit
(40) On the grassy coasts of it;
Little things with lovely surprise.
Some are clad in armor green—
(These have sure to battle been!)
Some are pied with every hue,
(45) Black and crimson, gold and blue;
Some have wings and swift are gone;
But they all look kindly on.
When my eyes I once again
Open and see all things plain;
High bare walls, great bare floor;
(50) Great big knobs on drawer and door;
Great big people perched on chairs,
Stitching tucks and mending tears,
Each a hill that I could climb,
And talking nonsense all the time—
(55) O dear me, that I could be
A sailor on the rain-pool sea,
A climber in the clover-tree,
And just come back, a sleepy-head,
Late at night to go to bed.
