With its airy chambers, light and boon, And the frolicsome winds as they wander by! 2 They have left their nests on the forest bough; "Come up! come up!" they seem to say, 3 "Come up! come up! for the world is fair Where the merry leaves dance in the summer air,” And the birds below give back the cry, "We come, we come to the branches high." How pleasant the lives of the birds must be, Living in love in a leafy tree! And away through the air what joy to go, 4 How pleasant the life of a bird must be, By a strong, free wing, through the rosy morn! To meet the young sun face to face, And pierce like a shaft the boundless space; 5 To pass through the bowers of the silver cloud, To spread out the wings for a wild, free flight 6 How pleasant the life of a bird must be, To go, when a joyful fancy calls, Then to wheel about with their mates at play, HELPS TO STUDY Notes and Questions To what are the trees compared in the first stanza? Where are the airy chambers of the trees? To what are these rooms open? Why are the nests not needed in summer? Read lines in the third stanza which describe something that men are now able to do. What kind of birds is described in the fourth stanza? What picture of the bird does the word "Skimming" give you? Have you ever seen birds "Cresting the billows''? PRONUNCIATION: trăv'-erse pierce (pērs) ǎm'-ê-thyst (thist) VOCABULARY: What are cliffs? Where would you look for a "cliff-built" nest? At what time of day may the sun be called the "young sun''? What do we call the "'sun-lit bow''? Read the lines in the fifth stanza which tell how the colors in the "sun-lit bow" are made. By what are the water drops "kissed''? What color is amethyst? What colors of the rainbow are not mentioned in this description? Words and Phrases for Study air'-y-open to a free current of air. frŏl'-ic-some-playful; sportive. furze (fûrz) thith'-er be-neath' (bê-neth') rē’-gion (jŭn)—country; district; a portion of space. WORDS AND PHRASES: "heath" "yellow furze" "frolicsome winds" "light and boon'' "through the rosy morn" "upper-cloud wings" "merry leaves dance'' "homes of delight" "rosy child" "wherever it listeth" "pierce like a shaft" "thunder halls" "living breeze'' "wastes'' "boundless space" "like silver foam" "'bower" "billowy sea SING ON, BLITHE BIRD WILLIAM MOTHERWELL William Motherwell (1797-1835), a Scotch poet, was born in Glasgow. He lived and died in that city. 1 I'VE plucked the berry from the bush, the brown nut from the tree, But heart of happy little bird ne'er broken was by me. I saw them in their curious nests, close couching, slyly peer With their wild eyes, like glittering beads, to note if harm were near; I passed them by, and blessed them all; I felt that it was good To leave unmoved the creatures small whose home was in the wood. 2 And here, even now, above my head, a lusty rogue doth sing, HELPS TO STUDY Notes and Questions Where do you think this poet lived in his boyhood? What tells you? Where did he see the nests? To what does he compare the eyes of the birds? What do you think would break the heart of a little bird? Read the lines which tell why the bird is not afraid of the poet. How do you think the birds know their friends? What happiness does the poet get Read the lines that another poet Both man and bird and beast. Celia Thaxter (1835-1894), an American poet, was a native of Portsmouth, N. H. Her father was a light-house keeper on one of the rocky isles known as the "Isles of Shoals," off the coast of New Hampshire. She wrote many beautiful poems about wild flowers and birds. She is called the "Poet of the Shoals.'' 1 THE alder by the river Shakes out her powdery curls; The willow buds in silver, For little boys and girls. 2 The little birds fly over And O, how sweet they sing! To tell the happy children That once again 'tis spring. |