A Miracle

A Miracle written by William Henry Davies

From "Secrets", 1924

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Let women long for dainty things,
Expecting twins - content am I:
I want no more, no more than the sea
Wants water, that was never dry.
The ale was strong, and I had three,
Three glasses only, on my soul!
I could have walked home straight, but still
Preferred a proud, Atlantic roll.

Those stars in Heaven are frisking lambs,
Not flocks of steady sheep,' I think;
'Poets who call them flocks of sheep,
Are fools, or either lie or drink.'
As I said this, the earth broke up,
And danced in parts, like living things;
Till, falling on their backs, I twirled
Around and around, in countless rings.

The worm may turn, it matters not,
It helps the bird, and nothing more:
I turned and turned, but still those parts
Danced faster than they did before.
Till, rolled and rocked to sleep at last,
I lost, it seems, my senses nine:
The sun stood still, in Joshua's day,
But how the earth has danced, in mine!

This work is in the public domain in countries where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or less.