Eugene Field

Little Willie

When Willie was a little boy,
   No more than five or six,
 Right constantly he did annoy
   His mother with his tricks.
 Yet not a picayune cared I
   For what he did or said,
 Unless, as happened frequently,
   The rascal wet the bed.
 Closely he cuddled up to me,
  And put his hands in mine,
Till all at once I seemed to be
  Afloat in seas of brine.
Sabean odors clogged the air,
  And filled my soul with dread,
Yet I could only grin and bear
  When Willie wet the bed.
 
'Tis many times that rascal has
  Soaked all the bedclothes through,
Whereat I’d feebly light the gas
  And wonder what to do.
Yet there he lay, so peaceful like;
  God bless his curly head,
I quite forgave the little tyke
  For wetting of the bed.
 
Ah me, those happy days have flown.
  My boy’s a father, too,
And little Willies of his own
  Do what he used to do.
And I! Ah, all that’s left for me
  Is dreams of pleasure fled!
Our boys ain’t what they used to be
  When Willie wet the bed.
 
Had I my choice, no shapely dame
  Should share my couch with me,
No amorous jade of tarnished fame,
  Nor wench of high degree;
But I would choose and choose again
  The little curly head,
Who cuddled close beside me when
  He used to wet the bed.
Altre opere di Eugene Field...



Alto