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 —
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, 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, High o'erhead 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
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 See the greater swallows pass In the sky,
And the round sun rolling by Heeding no such things as I. Through that forest I can pass 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.
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 On the grassy coasts of it; Little things with lovely eyes See me sailing with surprise.
Some are clad in armour green — ( These have sure to battle been! ) — Some are pied with ev'ry hue, 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; 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 — 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.
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