Singing the Living Tradition ‎#94

94. What Is This Life

1 What is this life if, full of care,
we have no time to stand and stare –
no time to stand beneath the boughs
and stare as long as sheep or cows;

2 No time to see, when woods we pass,
where squirrels hide their nuts in grass –
no time to see, in broad daylight,
streams full of stars, like skies at night;

3 No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
and watch her feet, how they can dance.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

Text Information

• First Line: What is this life if, full of care
• Title: What Is This Life
• Author: William Henry Davies, 1869-1941
• Meter: L.M.
• Language: English
• Publication Date: 1993
• Topic: Transcending Mystery and Wonder: Meditation and Mystical Songs; Animals; Beauty; Commitment; Nature and the Countryside; Serenity

Tune Information

• Name: DEVOTION
• Meter: L.M.
• Key: A Major
• Source: A. D. Carden's Missouri Harmony, 1820