#ClassicPoetry – #HenryWadsworthLongfellow – #TheChildren’sHour

/ Marcia

Thought I’d stop by long enough to share another of my favorite poems from days LONG gone by. With family holidays coming up soon, it seemed appropriate, and I hope you can imagine these images and feel this love as deeply as I always have. Enjoy!

The Children’s Hour

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow – 1807-1882

Between the dark and the daylight,
When the night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day’s occupations,
That is known as the Children’s Hour.

I hear in the chamber above me
The patter of little feet,
The sound of a door that is opened,
And voices soft and sweet.

From my study I see in the lamplight,
Descending the broad hall stair,
Grave Alice, and laughing Allegra,
And Edith with golden hair.

A whisper, and then a silence:
Yet I know by their merry eyes
They are plotting and planning together
To take me by surprise.

A sudden rush from the stairway,
A sudden raid from the hall!
By three doors left unguarded
They enter my castle wall!

They climb up into my turret
O’er the arms and back of my chair;
If I try to escape, they surround me;
They seem to be everywhere.

They almost devour me with kisses,
Their arms about me entwine,
Till I think of the Bishop of Bingen
In his Mouse-Tower on the Rhine!

Do you think, O blue-eyed banditti,
Because you have scaled the wall,
Such an old mustache as I am
Is not a match for you all!

I have you fast in my fortress,
And will not let you depart,
But put you down into the dungeon
In the round-tower of my heart.

And there will I keep you forever,
Yes, forever and a day,
Till the walls shall crumble to ruin,
And moulder in dust away!

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include Paul Revere’s Ride, The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline. He was the first American to completely translate Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy and was one of the Fireside Poets from New England.

Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine, which was then still part of Massachusetts. He graduated from Bowdoin College and became a professor there and, later, at Harvard College after studying in Europe. His first major poetry collections were Voices of the Night (1839) and Ballads and Other Poems (1841). He retired from teaching in 1854 to focus on his writing, and he lived the remainder of his life in the Revolutionary War headquarters of George Washington in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Longfellow died in 1882.

Longfellow wrote many lyric poems known for their musicality and often presenting stories of mythology and legend. He became the most popular American poet of his day and had success overseas.

And there you have another beloved poem from the Days of Yore!
Hope you enjoyed it!

23 thoughts on “#ClassicPoetry – #HenryWadsworthLongfellow – #TheChildren’sHour”

    • Thanks, Harmony! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. I think I read every poem Longfellow ever wrote, somewhere around 9th grade. I loved his work, and it has definitely stood the test of time. And thanks for dropping in today to let me know your thoughts. Hope you have a wonderful week!! 😀 ❤

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    • So glad you are enjoying the series, Trish. I’m having fun re-reading some of these works after so many years, and finding many that I think are worthy of passing on. Longfellow was a real favorite of mine, and his work will probably pop up here and there in the months ahead.

      Thanks for stopping by today and letting me know you enjoyed this one! And here’s to a great week, my friend! 😀 ❤

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    • Longfellow wrote so many wonderful, lyrical poems, it’s hard to keep track. I always enjoyed this one, and hoped folks who stopped by to read it would, too. There will be more in the months ahead, Joan, from all sorts of poets and in various styles. Hope you’ll have fun checking them out, and thanks for doing so today. Have a great week! 😀 ❤

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    • So glad you enjoyed it, Gwen. I’ve always loved Longfellow (among others from that era) and I’m having fun sharing them. Thanks for stopping by today, and hope you have a peace-filled, beautiful week! 🤗❤️🤗

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    • So glad you enjoyed this little visit with Longfellow the the children. I’ve always loved this poem (and others of his), and am enjoying sharing various oldies with everyone. Glad you’re happy to read some of them! Here’s to a wonderful week and a very Happy Thanksgiving, too, Mae! 🤗❤️🤗

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    • You are very welcome, Priscilla. I figure these classic poems will be wonderful re-reads for many of us, and brand new pleasures for many of the rest, so sharing them is a win-win, from my perspective. So glad you enjoyed this one, and thanks for stopping by to let me know. 😀 ❤

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