Classic Poem

Oh! would that I were very far away
Among the lanes, with hedges all around,
Happily listening to the dreamy sound
Of distant sheep-bells, smelling the new hay
And all the wild-flowers scattered in my way:
Or would that I were lying on some mound
Where shade and butterflies and thyme abound,
Beneath the trees, upon a sunny day:
Or would I strolled beside the mighty sea,
The sea before, and the tall cliffs behind;
While winds from the warm south might tell to me
How health and joy for all men are designed:—
But be I where I may, would I had thee,
And heard thy gentle voice, my Mother kind.