William Butler Yeats. b. 1865
863. When You are Old
1 min to read
100 words

WHEN you are old and gray and full of sleep   And nodding by the fire, take down this book,   And slowly read, and dream of the soft look Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,   And loved your beauty with love false or true;   But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you, And loved the sorrows of your changing face.

And bending down beside the glowing bars,   Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled   And paced upon the mountains overhead, And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

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William Butler Yeats. b. 1865
864. The Lake Isle of Innisfree
1 min to read
123 words
Return to The Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250–1900






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