Bound and bordered in leaf green.
Edged with trellis buds and flowers,
And glad Summer-gold, with clean
White and purple morning-glories
Such as suit the songs and stories
Of this book of ours,
Unrevised in text or scene, --
The Book of Joyous Children
Wild and breathless in their glee--
Lawless rangers of all ways
Winding through lush greenery
Of Elysian vales--the viny,
Bowery groves of shady, shiny
Haunts of childish days.
Spread and read again with me
The Book of Joyous Children.
What a whir of wings, and what
Sudden drench of dews upon
The young brows, wreathed, all unsought,
With all the aplle-blossom garlands
Of the poets of those far lands
When all dreams are drawn
When all dreams are drawn
Set herein and soiling not
The Book of Joyous Children.
In their blithe companionship,
Taste again, these pages through,
The hot honey on your lip
Of the sun-smit wild strawberry
Or the chill tart of the cherry;
Kneel, all glowing, to
The cool spring, and with it sip
The Book of Joyous Children
As their laughter needs no rule,
So accept their language, pray, --
Touch it not with any tool:
Surely we may understand it, --
As the heart has parsed or scanned is
Is a worthy way,
Though not found in any School
The Book of Joyous Children
Be a truant---know no place
Of prison under heaven's rim!
Front the Father's smiling face---
Smiling, that you may smile the brighter
For the heavy hearts made lighter,
Since you smile with Him.
Take--and thank Him for His grace---
The Book of Joyous Children.
--James Whitcomb Riley
Dear Friends,
I hope you enjoyed this little taste of what the children have been up to lately~ We had a bang-up Dolls' Independence Day parade, and a few fun rain showers to go out and play in!
Wishing you a day of making sweet memories with your own loved ones.
Love,
Marqueta
Play, play, play! I loved it when my children were busy in their imaginary world of play! I still have barbie dolls thrown in a container like that. My boys loved the knight look, and swords! It was hard to find things like that two decades ago. Cute umbrella fort!
ReplyDeleteMarqueta, Your pictures are so delightful and refreshing! So good of the girls to keep the sun off the dollies. We all need a good parasol!
ReplyDeleteFun times and someday such fun memories to look back upon.....I look back with fondness on such times of play with my own " Joyous Children" ....blessings sweet Marqueta
ReplyDeleteBeautiful words. That umbrella hideaway is terrific. I can remember that feeling of getting inside or under something...a cosy little house. My children do it too ---so much fun.
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