Classic and Contemporary Poetry
WHERE THE KETTLE SINGS, by DOUGLAS MALLOCH Poet's Biography First Line: I like to walk the quiet streets Last Line: That peace is where the kettle sings. Subject(s): Home | ||||||||
I like to walk the quiet streets Of towns I do not know, Not where the whirl of traffic meets But where the tide is slow -- The quiet streets I like to roam, The little neighborhoods of home. A candle in a cottage burns; I pause awhile and dream; Tonight some laborer returns, Rewarded by its beam For all the heavy day of toil, The heat of sun, the grime of soil. A rose-bush by the window, she A rose beside the door, Whose petalled lips are good to see, A baby on the floor -- Oh, better this, the humble cot, Than palaces where love is not. L'ENVOI The theme is old -- the cot, the wife -- But we shall learn at last That this is all there is of life Worth while when youth is past, Whatever wealth ambition brings, That peace is where the kettle sings. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...EL FLORIDA ROOM by RICHARD BLANCO DESTINATIONS by JOSEPHINE JACOBSEN TO THIS HOUSE by ROBINSON JEFFERS THE UPSTAIRS ROOM by WELDON KEES HOME IS SO SAD by PHILIP LARKIN DUTCH INTERIOR by DAVID LEHMAN A DIFFERENT WAY by DOUGLAS MALLOCH |
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